SPUTNIK, Moscow, June 27 - The Russian Agricultural Export Center told the SPUTNIK that China became the country with the largest demand for plant milk in 2022.

Plant milk is popular in many countries, among which soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk, oat milk and rice milk are the most popular. In 2022, the world demand for plant-based milk increased by 3.7% to 10.2 million tons, of which soy milk accounted for 37.8%, almond milk accounted for 20%, and oat milk accounted for 12%.

According to sources, China's demand for plant-based milk in 2022 was 3.7 million tons, accounting for 36.4% of the world's plant-based milk market, and the value of demand accounted for 32.1%. US ranked second in demand for plant milk, and Japan ranked third.

China tops the ranking of plant-based milk imports in 2022 at US$540.2 million (20.7% of world imports). In the past five years, the annual growth rate of China's plant milk imports has been 14%.

In addition, China ranked third among the world's plant milk exporters, after the United States and Italy. It is reported that the growing popularity of plant-based milks worldwide is related to the promotion of vegetarianism, increased awareness of health and environmental issues, the increasing proportion of lactose-intolerant people, and the rapid emergence of new products.