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Non-dairy milk campaigner group, No Milk Tax, has published a report that details which US coffee chains have dropped the surcharge for vegan milk, and which chains are still charging extra for alternative milk such as oat, soya, and almond milk.
The report comes in the wake of Starbucks dropping the non-dairy milk charge, often described as an unfair tax on people with lactose intolerance, vegans, and those wishing to avoid dairy milk for animal cruelty and environmental concerns.
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No Milk Tax points out the surcharge could be viewed as discriminatory, saying on the campaign’s website: “About 50 million Americans are lactose intolerant, including 80% of Black Americans, 90% of Asian Americans, and 50% of Latino Americans. In fact, a number of major coffee chains have faced or are currently facing lawsuits alleging their pricing practices are discriminatory.”
Brands drop dairy-free surcharge
The report highlights that the chains dropping the extra charge, making the “Beans of Steel” list, include: Starbucks, Panera, Philz Coffee, Pret A Manger, Compass Coffee, Gregorys Coffee, Intelligentsia, Birch Coffee, Stumptown, and several more.
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“Core to the Starbucks Experience is the ability to customize your beverage to make it yours,” Brian Niccol, CEO of Starbucks said. “By removing the extra charge for nondairy milks, we’re embracing all the ways our customers enjoy their Starbucks.”
“One of our core values is doing the right thing,” Jorrie Bruffett, US President of Pret A Manger said. “We thought, you know what, really it’s not the right thing to do to keep having this vegan tax, if you will or an extra charge.”
No Milk Tax listed the following chains on its ‘Latte Losers’ list, all charging between $0.50 and $1.50 extra for vegan milk: Dunkin’ ($0.50), Dutch Bros ($0.50), Scooter’s ($0.80), Costa Coffee ($0.75), Verve ($1.50), Caffé Nero ($1), Tim Hortons ($0.50), among several more.
The campaign’s website states: “While baristas are whipping up festive drinks this holiday season, we’re calling on all lagging coffee chains to bring cheer to the millions of customers who prefer dairy-free concoctions by dropping the non-dairy tax.”
The No Milk Tax petition can be signed here.
