In the great conversations around sustainable living, one oft-repeated topic ignites debate like nothing else: milk.
Dairy milk, as we know, comes from dairy cows, which produce more methane than any other farmed animal and require acres and acres of grass, plus the water to maintain that grass and keep the cows hydrated. Plant-based milks such as soy milk, almond milk, and oat milk are popular alternatives, but even those have some drawbacks — soy farming has been linked to deforestation in the Amazon, almonds are a thirsty crop, and growing oats for oat milk can harm soil.
Other milk alternatives include macadamia nut milk and pea milk, two of the newest contenders in the milk race. They are thought to be more environmentally friendly — macadamia trees don’t require much water and are better for the soil; pea milk comes from split yellow peas, legumes that are not only self-fertilizing but also actively capture carbon. But these milks are simply harder to come by. (Rice milk, hemp milk, and coconut milk are also alternatives, but they’re less popular, so we’ll only mention them in passing.)
You don’t always have to go to the alternatives to lessen your impact on the environment. Shelf-stable milk, for instance, is a more climate-friendly option for those determined to keep dairy in their lives.
Adding to the confusion, there’s a lot of mis- and disinformation out there about milk. To help you navigate it all, we’ve put together this guide to milk, broken down by priority:
Nutrition:
One study published in 2023 evaluated the nutritional difference between dairy milk and plant-based milks and concluded that the nutritional benefits of a serving of dairy milk and a serving of soy or pea milk are similar, especially if the alternative milks are fortified with calcium and vitamin D. “The overall nutrient content of the diet experiences minimal changes,” the study stated, “while significantly reducing the environmental impact.” Macadamia nut milk was not included in the study.
According to the Vegan Review, “Compared with other plant-based milks, pea milk is one of the healthiest and most sustainable: It has less sugar and saturated fat, but more protein and vitamins like calcium.”
One thing to keep in mind: Many plant-based milks have added sugars, especially oat milk. Coconut milk is high in saturated fats, which can impact cholesterol levels, and often comes with added sugars.
Environmental Impact:
Macadamia nut milk and pea milk may have the lowest environmental impacts. Pea milk brand Ripple claims that its pea milk requires 99% less water to produce than almond milk.
The almonds for almond milk in the U.S. are predominantly grown in California, which, between December 2000 and December 2025, faced persistent drought-like conditions across the state. As the World Resources Institute notes, “The impact of almond milk’s water footprint may be worse than cow’s milk if comparing almond milk produced in a water-stressed region such as California with cow’s milk produced in less water-stressed regions.”
Rice crops for rice milk give off methane and take a lot of water to produce, making it one of the least environmentally friendly milks.
Home Baking:
Lactose and all the other unique and complex components of dairy milk work together to make a unique product for cooking and baking. To keep dairy in your kitchen in a more environmentally friendly way, look for shelf-stable milks. These milks are pasteurized at a higher temperature than refrigerated milk, and therefore don’t need refrigeration. According to The New Republic: “Its nutritional profile is not so different from pasteurized milk. It contains less folate — a B vitamin important for fertility — but is basically identical in calories and calcium content, which diverts a lot of potential greenhouse gas emissions.”
A 2019 study published by the American Public Health Association notes that “replacing conventional dairy milk with shelf-stable dairy … would reduce milk-associated [greenhouse gas emissions] by 28.5%.”
Shelf-stable dairy milk is generally a 1:1 replacement for refrigerated dairy milk, but there may be some slight variations in taste and texture: It can taste slightly “cooked” and therefore a little bit sweeter than refrigerated dairy milk. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though. America’s Test Kitchen ran an experiment and found that shelf-stable dairy milk made for “a slightly creamier texture in the mac and cheese” when compared to refrigerated dairy milk.
A General Note:
When possible, always buy shelf-stable milks, either dairy or plant-based. They save emissions through every step of the production process by not requiring refrigeration. A study published two weeks ago by the Rocky Mountain Institute estimates that “by 2050, cooling electricity demand is expected to match the combined annual electricity consumption of the United States, China, India, Germany, and Japan today.”
– Michaela Keil, Editor, Bluedot Living Brooklyn
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Climate News, In Brief
SCOOP Act: Councilmembers and dog lovers rallied at Tompkins Square Park today for the Safe and Clean Outdoor Ownership Practices (SCOOP) Act, a package of bills aimed at ensuring dog waste is picked up from city streets and public spaces.
Development Approved: A divisive proposed development, the Monitor Point project, slated for the north shore of Greenpoint’s Bushwick Inlet, was approved last week by the City Planning Commission, clearing the way for a final City Council vote.
Free Climate Retrofit: A New York Disaster Interfaith Services program offers free, confidential climate-ready audits and retrofit grants to houses of worship that are within the city’s Environmental Justice Neighborhoods.
Embodied Carbon: NYU Tandon, in partnership with the New York City Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice, will establish benchmarks for embodied carbon, which is the carbon released in the building process. New York currently has a way to measure an existing building’s carbon emissions, but it is missing a system for embodied carbon. This means that things like extracting materials, manufacturing, and transport aren’t consistently taken into account.
Confronting Climate Change: The Center for Brooklyn History continues its three-part series “Confronting Climate Change” on June 8 with “Solutions — From Innovation to Action.” The talk will feature climate scholars, lawyers, scientists, and adaptation experts.
Trucks of Art: The Department of Sanitation and the Sanitation Foundation announced the winners of this year’s Trucks of Art competition. The five winners include two Brooklyn natives.
Photo: Julie Thompson/Brooklyn Eagle
The housing market in Downtown Brooklyn exploded last year with over 4,800 new units, smashing the previous record of 2,925. Since a 2004 rezoning, the neighborhood has added over 26,000 units.
A big issue is that no new green space has been created in the surrounding neighborhoods to keep up with this population spike, advocates say.
“The reality for everybody here is that there’s just not enough parks and open space,” said Adam Ganser, executive director of New Yorkers for Parks.
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Dear Dot,
We buy and use compostable doggie bags for our pup’s poops. But we typically toss them in the garbage, so is there any point to compostable bags? Are they still better than non-compostable or biodegradable bags?
– Deb
Dear Deb,
Let’s start by saying, please, all you hound huggers, for the love of all that’s sacred, pick up your pup’s poop. Turns out, only half to three-quarters of people actually do, depending on your statistical source.
Compostable bags, say the experts, are the eco-friendly choice, and the same study revealed that they broke down in three months under the same conditions.
That said, if you’re tossing the poop-filled bags into the garbage, the difference between the two is negligible because the conditions of a landfill are not conducive to biodegradation or composting.
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BLUEDOT LIVING KITCHEN
Photo by Jocelyn Filley-Wachs
What is more summery than fresh blueberries? These scones pack quite a blueberry punch and work with both fresh and frozen berries.
BROOKLYN BIRD WATCH
Turkey Vultures travel thousands of miles each spring, returning from wintering grounds as far south as Venezuela to breeding grounds across North America. They arrive so depleted that they’ve lost half their body weight. Hungry and running on fumes, they’ll stop for any meal they can find. On our roads, that means roadkill and the traffic that comes with it. What happens on the pavement, and why it matters, isn’t what most people expect.
Scientists think Turkey Vultures spread their wings like this to dry damp feathers, warm up after a cool night, and possibly reduce bacteria picked up while feeding.
The Bluedot Brooklyn newsletter is edited by Michaela Keil. If you have any questions, suggestions, ideas, or want to tell us what you’re doing, email [email protected].
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