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Dutch chocolate milk brand Chocomel is bringing the plant-based version of its popular drink to the UK.
Owned by FrieslandCampina, the eighth largest dairy company in the world, Chocomel was launched in 1932. It claims to be the only chocolate milk consumers need, leading to its strapline “the one and only.” This is because it can be enjoyed straight from the fridge, or warmed and served as a hot chocolate drink.
The dairy-free version, which launched in the Netherlands in September, can also be drunk hot or cold. Made with cocoa, cashews, and pea protein, Chocomel Plant-Based was developed to answer the growing demand for animal-free dairy products.
“A 2021 YouGov survey found that three percent of people in the UK are vegan and this is currently on the rise,” said Gabriella Sudall, marketing manager NPD (Chocomel) at FrieslandCampina UK. “For Chocomel Plant-Based, it was vital to get the thick and creamy texture as close to the original as possible.”
“Our technical team has worked tirelessly to ensure we are able to re-create Chocomel’s famous velvety and chocolatey taste, and we’ve been genuinely delighted with the results – and so have our shoppers,” Sudall added.
Getting dairy-free chocolate milk right
Chocomel claims that it was not willing to launch a vegan product until it could perfectly replicate its recognizable taste without conventional dairy.
As a result, the brand trialed numerous incarnations of its new product, testing various plant bases. It reports that a blend of cashews and pea protein proved to be the winning formula with a 97 percent approval rating from a tasting panel.
“After an intensive testing process, we’ve managed to develop a perfect plant-based formula which delivers the well-known taste of Chocomel. This way, ‘The one and only’ remains familiar to everyone,” Dustin Woodward, managing director FrieslandCampina Netherlands, said at the time.
Chocomel follows in the footsteps of other plant-based chocolate milk drink releases, including those from Oatly, Alpro, and Rebel Kitchen.
Chocomel Plant-Based will be available in one-liter cartons at supermarkets across the UK from January 2023.
