Dairy & Egg Alternatives: United States

Dairy & Egg Alternatives: United States

This report forecasts for 2024-2029 US dairy and egg alternative sales in nominal US dollars. Total plant-based dairy and egg sales are segmented by product in terms of: milk; creamer; yogurt; ice cream and other frozen novelties; butter; ready-to-drink beverages; cheese; spreads, dips, sour cream, and sauces; and eggs.

To illustrate historical trends, total plant-based dairy and egg sales and the various segments are provided for 2018-2023 and estimated for 2024.

This report examines the dynamics of the current landscape of the plant-based and animal-free (also known as cultivated, cruelty-free, lab-made, etc.) dairy and egg retail market. Plant-based dairy and egg products in the scope of this report include alternatives to dairy or eggs that attempt to replicate the flavor, function, and/or texture of these products through use of plant proteins. Alternatives like these often use terms such as: plant-based dairy/egg; vegetarian/vegan dairy/egg; dairy-free dairy/eggless egg; dairy/egg alternative; slightly altered names of the products they are imitating (e.g., chedd'r, mylk); and invented compound names derived from the primary plant-based ingredient and the conventional product name (e.g., almond milk, cashew cream cheese).

Although tofu, tempeh, and seitan may be used as substitutes for dairy or eggs by some consumers, they are excluded from the scope of this report unless they are sold in a dairy or egg form, or are otherwise specifically imitating these products. Other products such as pumpkin, banana, applesauce, flax seeds, and chia seeds are also commonly used as replacements for eggs in baking, but these ingredients are also excluded from the scope of this report. This means that vegetarian or vegan versions of animal products that use these ingredients – such as Chao Creamery plant-based cheese, which is made from chao tofu that specifically imitates cheese – are included in this report, but packages of the ingredients themselves are not.

Additionally, it is worth noting that sales of coconut milk and coconut cream sold as a general cooking ingredient (made directly from the pressing of coconut meat and often sold in cans) are not included in this report. Coconut milk in the scope of this report is developed to more closely imitate dairy milk and contains added water – and often other ingredients – to make it more suitable for drinking and use in a one-to-one ratio as a substitute for dairy milk. These products are frequently sold in cartons and can be refrigerated for use as a milk replacement.

Similarly, while trends in production and sales of plant-based meals or prepared foods containing plant-based dairy or eggs (e.g., frozen meals, pizza, mac & cheese, & burritos) are important to the development of the market for dairy and egg alternatives, the value of these sales are not included in the report. These products contain dairy and egg alternatives as only a small part of their ingredient profile.

Retail sales in this report include those made via consumer retail channels such as: grocery stores and supermarkets (e.g., Albertsons, Giant Eagle, Kroger, Publix, Safeway, local grocers); mass merchandisers (e.g., Walmart, Target, Meijer); specialty grocery stores (e.g., Whole Foods, Sprouts, Trader Joe's); wholesale clubs (e.g., Costco, Sam's Club, BJ's); discount grocers (e.g., ALDI, Save-a-Lot); and apps and websites (e.g., Amazon, Thrive Market, Walmart.com, Kroger.com, Instacart).

Other various topics, including profiles of pertinent leading companies, are covered in this report. A full outline of report items by page is available in the Table of Contents.

Related NAICS Codes:

• 112310 Chicken Egg Production
• 311511 Fluid Milk Manufacturing
• 311512 Creamery Butter Manufacturing
• 311513 Cheese Manufacturing
• 311514 Dry, Condensed, and Evaporated Dairy Product Manufacturing
• 311520 Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Manufacturing
• 311999 All Other Miscellaneous Food Manufacturing
• 424440 Poultry and Poultry Product Merchant Wholesalers