Research
Micronutrients & recovery
Plant-based milk substitutes lack key micronutrients found in animal milk (such as high-quality protein, calcium, and vitamins A, D, E, and B12) and require specific fortification strategies to match the nutritional profile of cow's milk.
If you switch to plant-based milk, check the label. Most unfortified versions lack the calcium, vitamin D, and protein of cow's milk. Choose products that are explicitly fortified to match these levels to maintain your nutritional intake.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
A number of nutrition scientists have criticized plant-based milk substitutes based on the fact that they do not contain all of the essential nutrients found in cow’s milk, such as high-quality proteins, minerals (such as calcium), and vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E, and B12).
Why this rating
The paper is a comprehensive review citing multiple studies on commercial products and formulation science.
Source
Development of Next-Generation Nutritionally Fortified Plant-Based Milk Substitutes: Structural Design Principles
David Julian McClements · Foods · 2020
DOI 10.3390/foods9040421
narrative_reviewCited 244×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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