Is soy milk or almond milk actually milk? How about cheese made from tapioca and coconut oil?
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Dairy companies are fighting with soy milk producers over what can be called milk
The Dairy Pride Act, introduced before Congress in January, argues that products should be labeled as milk or cheese only if they come from a hoofed mammal.
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These are the kinds of questions that might be debated before Congress, thanks to the Dairy Pride Act.
Introduced in January, the bill aims to impose FDA labeling standards on dairy products. If passed, it would mean that companies making plant-based alternatives to dairy-based foods couldn't call their products milk, cheese, or yogurt, since they do not come from hoofed mammals.
The Dairy Pride Act, introduced by Representative
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"Given the proliferation of plant-based products in the marketplace that are mislabeled as milk despite the standard of identity defined for this substance, enforcement by the FDA against these practices should be improved to avoid misleading consumers."
," Daiya Foods CEO tells Business Insider. His company produces cheese and yogurts made primarily of tapioca, coconut oil, and inactive yeast.
believes that plant-based milks and cheese are just another segment of the dairy industry. Milk, he adds, should be defined by how it's used by consumers — since people can and drink and cook with almond or cashew milk the same way you would with cow's milk, so they should all be considered the same thing.
The Dairy Pride Act is "a
But , the CEO of A2 Milk, worries that grocery shoppers might assume that non-dairy milks are nutritionally equivalent to cow's milk. Waltrip's company produces a milk that uses a protein called A2 (though most milks have the A1 protein). He says the health benefits of plant-based milks don't match those of regular milk, which has essential nutrients like calcium, vitamin D, and potassium. (Some brands of soy and almond milk are fortified with these nutrients, however.)
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"There is a definition of milk. It's not milk if it comes from a plant,," he tells BI.
On March 2, a nonprofit that advocates for plant-based foods, called the Good Food Institute (GFI), filed an FDA petition that argues labeling beverages "almond milk" and "soy milk" is a free speech issue.
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