Chobani launches dairy creamers and oat-based alternatives

19-Nov-2019 - Last updated on 19-Nov-2019 at 15:31 GMT

“The Chobani Oat platform isn't meant to be a replacement for dairy as for most, it's not an either/or world between dairy and non-dairy products." Pics: Chobani

In the Greek yogurt company’s biggest brand expansion to date, Chobani will roll out oat beverages, oat yogurt substitutes, oatmeal dairy yogurt, and dairy creamers in the coming months.

In the last 12 months, Chobani has diversified its portfolio with the Gimmies line of products dedicated to kids, and the non-dairy coconut-based line of cups and drinks. It talked about dairy and traditional dairy brands needing ‘true innovation’ to stay competitive in the market.

Now Chobani will dig deeper into the plant-based category with its new ‘World of Chobani Oat’ collection. The Oat Drinks line feature cartons of milk alternatives in Plain, Vanilla, Chocolate, Plain Extra Creamy and Barista Blend, made with organic oats.

The oat yogurt alternatives are available in Oat Blend (Vanilla, Strawberry Vanilla, Blueberry Pomegranate and Peach Mandarin) and Oat Blend with Crunch (Strawberry Granola Crunch, Blueberry Almond Crumble and Peach Coconut Crunch).

Hamdi Ulukaya, founder and CEO of Chobani, said, "Like yogurt, oats are an ancient food with deep roots in our culture and our land. These grains deserve to be celebrated. I always knew our journey from yogurt to becoming a modern food company would be through nutritious, delicious, batch-made products like Chobani Oats, and today they're helping us further deliver on our founding mission of making better food for more people."

A new variety of the brand’s traditional dairy Greek yogurt also fits the oat launch, with four flavors of Greek Yogurt with Oatmeal - Apple Spice with Brown Sugar Oatmeal, Blueberry with Maple Oatmeal, Banana with Maple Oatmeal, and Peach with Brown Sugar Oatmeal.

Another dairy launch comes in the form of 24oz creamers. Chobani said they contain five or fewer natural ingredients like locally-sourced, farm-fresh milk and cream with no added oil. They are available now in Caramel, Sweet Cream, Hazelnut and Vanilla.

It's not an either/or for dairy and non-dairy

The draw for the oat products is that they are free from dairy, lactose, nuts and gluten, but Chobani will have an equal focus on all its products in an effort to be a more well-rounded brand. They believe that consumers have great taste, but they need better options.

“The Chobani Oat platform isn't meant to be a replacement for dairy as for most, it's not an either/or world between dairy and non-dairy products. Chobani knows that people aren't getting the quality, craft and taste they deserve with today's non-dairy products,” the company said.

“When we say better food for more people, that includes those looking for non-dairy products, and that's what our new Chobani Oat products are all about.”

The oat news from Chobani comes at a time when oat-based dairy alternatives are at an all-time high in popularity. Better Than Milk, Oath, So Delicious, Silk and Malk Organics all launched products this year that leverage an oat base for milk, ice cream or yogurt alternatives.

But this week, FoodNavigator-USA reported that PepsiCo will discontinue its Quaker Oat Beverage line of milk substitutes less than a year after its launch.

It was Quaker’s only drink product and was positioned as ‘heart healthy.’ At the time of the launch, Quaker said it wanted to build on the momentum of the plant-based diet and was optimistic about growth within the category.