Dairy-free milks are skyrocketing in popularity, and the options presented to consumers seem endless. While nut milks do offer an alternative to those avoiding dairy, there are two areas in which customers would benefit by increasing their awareness: packaging and additives.
Packaging
When shopping for nut (and seed) milks, most customers place more emphasis on type of milk rather than type of packaging. Dairy milk is often sold in “number 2” plastic, also known as high-density polyethylene, while nuts milks are not. Avoiding plastic jugs and opting for the paperboard cartons may seem prudent, but it isn’t always so.
Nut milks, as well as some dairy milks, are traditionally sold in paperboard containers (also known as gable-top containers). They’re not, however, solely constructed out of paper. The outer and innermost layers are lined with a chemical plasticizer (“number 4” plastic) known as low-density polyethylene (LDPE). Without this coating, the paperboard would become soggy and unable to support the liquid.
What’s the issue with this compound? LDPE takes a very long time to biodegrade in the environment. It can be recycled, but the EPA estimates that only about 5.7% of LDPE is actually recycled by consumers. There isn’t a lot of research examining the effects of LDPE on human health, but let’s think about it: we’re drinking liquid that has been inconspicuously exposed to plastic, sometimes for weeks – a plastic that also requires an extremely long time to naturally biodegrade. This is just a hypothesis, but if the plastic leaches into the nut milk and we consume this milk, could routine exposure to non-biodegradable LDPE build up inside our bodies, assuming some of it is incorporated into our tissues? If this is the case, what are the health implications? We’re all familiar with the endocrine disrupting properties of plastics (BPA containing or not); is LDPE any different? Milk for thought.
Additives
Look at the ingredient list for most dairy-free milks. Very rarely do we only see the two most important ingredients: water, and the nut (or seed). Instead, we’re given a catalog of additives, including vitamins, sugars, thickeners, preservatives, and flavors. Are they necessary? Why are they added?
Carrageenan, for example, is a polysaccharide extracted from seaweed that is used as a thickener in many nut milks. It isn’t as innocuous as one would think. In one study, researchers found that exposure to carrageenan in concentrations less than those found in the typical diet increased cell death, reduced cell proliferation, and induced cell cycle arrest in human intestinal epithelial cells (1). In another study, intestinal epithelial cells exposed to carrageenan upregulated the inflammatory response (2).
Of course, these two studies don’t rule out the use of carrageenan completely. And going back to LDPE – the “number 4” plastic – it may not be the absolute worst thing ever if our milk comes into contact with a synthetic compound that biodegrades at an extremely slow rate.
But we’ve got to ask ourselves this question: why exactly are these substances in our food supply? Are they added to benefit human health? Probably not. Would our bodies become deficient in a particular substance should they not be included? Again, probably not. Do they increase shelf life? Yes. Do they make shipping and storage easier? Yes. Do they improve flavor and mouthfeel (and sales)? Yes. Do most of the benefits accrue to the companies who produce these beverages? Yes.
If something is added to our food supply, and it’s not there to provide nutritional support, it’s probably not going to be the best thing for our bodies. Now, I am all for looking at things in the context of the bigger picture, but when the bigger picture becomes inundated with products that have absolutely no traditional use, nor research demonstrating their positive effects on human health, I’ve got to ask myself, “Is this okay?”
If you are on the quest towards optimal and adaptive health, and you feel it’s important knowing what substances your body is routinely exposed to, familiarize yourself with all the things that pass through your mouth. And then ask yourself, “Is this okay?”
Acorn milk
Not all nut and seed milks present the same problems. The issues stated above refer mostly to the store-bought varieties, and not to those made at home. Unless you’re deliberately adding thickeners, highly refined sweeteners, and unmarked natural flavors into your concoctions, home-made nut milks can be quite nutritious and satisfying.
Acorn milk is truly a wild beverage that can easily be made with very little cost. In order to create the drink, acorns must first be processed (gathered, dried, shelled, leached). On the final day of leaching, decant the final leaching water (this will not be the water used for milk) and transfer the wet acorn mush to a nut milk bag or cheesecloth, allowing the excess water to percolate into a jar or bowl. Once the acorns stop dripping, squeeze the cloth or bag to allow any remaining water to drip. The water you have collected will be used for acorn milk.
On the stove, bring the liquid to a boil. Once cooled, add in a sweetener of your choice (maple syrup or honey works well), and enjoy. Any unused liquid can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days.
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Thank you!
Adam Haritan
Wild Foodism 
Hi Adam
I appreciate your Acorn milk recipe, but I am a little unclear as to when the leaching process can be considered over and the acorn milk process ready to begin. I thought that the leaching doesn’t stop until all the moisture is out of the ground acorns?
Thank you-
I was interested in the concept of acorn milk for a book I was writing, but couldn’t fathom how to go about it without wasting acorns. I stumbled on a method as a byproduct of experiments with percolation leaching. Basically the water that had percolated through acorn meal became acorn milk.
I didn’t credit it at first, because it was still slightly bitter, so I left it in the garage for almost a month. Now I’m ready to process some more acorns for percolation, and rediscovered the liquid. I assumed it was bad, tossed it but there was this thick pale tan scum at the bottom. Tasting it it was starchy and not bitter. Holy moley, I mixed it was water and voila, acorn milk. It makes me wonder if the liquid I threw out wasn’t so bad after all. Also, where did the bitterness go? I don’t think tannins just break down sitting around.
That is really brilliant, that you gave this a try! I want to try it also, come autumn..
I’m not sure the tannin is an unmitigated evil. It’s tannin flavors in red wine that make it go so well with cheese. Hm. Acorn milk … fermentation … cheese. Are you sure you did not just invent acorn cheese?
Tannins can be broken down by enzymes.
Tannin is also the challenge with the very nutritious Caragana. I wonder if its bitter, 30% protein seed can be milked. .
Another option: acorns from white oaks, which are low in tannin. (I’m assumi9ng red oak acorns were used.)
The tannins in acorn are absolutely inedible by humans!
I apologize for my ignorance on the subject, but when you say “decant”, do you mean rinse or just drain? Also, then just let the excess water drain off and keep that little bit for milk, or could you add water to drain through it for more?
I have just collected a gallon of acorn milk from my leached acorns (blue oak, quercus douglasii). The acorn meal tastes fine, but the raw acorn milk is still quite bitter. Does boiling get rid of the bitter taste? Or is the boiling step to sterilize?