In a blind test, 

  53% prefer Oatly.  

 to cow’s milk 

 in coffee. 

We know that an overwhelming majority of German people drink coffee daily, however only a small share (9% to be exact*) drink oat drink in their coffee. Strange.

We decided to do a blind test to learn more and, in the end, it turned out 53% actually prefers Oatly to cows milk in coffee.

“I BET YOU RIGGED THE TEST DIDN’T YOU OATLY, IN YOUR FAVOUR? OR YOU JUST SENT ALL YOUR EMPLOYEES DOWN TO THE TEST AND GOT THEM TO PREFER OAT DRINK? OR YOU PROBABLY PLAYED SOME WEIRD DEATH METAL MUSIC WHEN THEY WERE TRYING THE COW’S MILK SO THEY PREFFERED THE ONE WITH OATLY BARISTA IN!”

Just before you come up with anymore theories, this page on this part of the internet will now tell you how the test was carried out.

First some people were needed who had mouths! Luckily people have mouths. So, 300 face to face interviews lasting 20 minutes each were conducted in 3 cities per country. In Germany it was Hamburg, Cologne and Nuremberg. 

There was some criteria on which those people were selected and none were employees of Oatly:

  • Everyday filter coffee drinkers that use milk/milk alternatives (such as soy, oat, almond) in their coffees with at least 3% fat
     
  • Male & Female

  • Age: 20-60 years old

  • All are at least partly responsible for purchase decisions in the household 

  • No people that work in marketing, market research or grocery industry 

  • No vegans or other special diet e.g. paleo, low carb 

  • No people with intolerances/allergies regarding coffee, milk, milk substitutes 

  • No rejectors of oat milk and cow milk – willing to have both in their coffee while tasting 

“YOU PROBABLY CARRIED THE TEST OUT AT OATLY HQ AND DRESSED IT ALL UP WITH OAT MESSAGING AND PLAYED THE SOUNDS OF OATS SWAYING IN A FIELD WITH OTHER SOUNDS OF NATURE SUCH AS RAIN, THUNDER, WIND, WATERFALLS, BIRDS, BEES BUZZING AND AN OPEN CRACKLING FIRE TO MAKE PEOPLE MORE RELAXED AN SUSEPTIBLE TO LIKING THE ONE WITH OATLY BARISTA IN IT AND YOU NEVER SHOWED ANYONE A PICTURE OF A COW?”

As we said, we didn’t carry out the test and was carried out by an independent institute and took place in a neutral room in a test studio. Not one single employee from Oatly was at the test. There was no music played so no-one heard any oats swaying in the wind. 

Each person tasted two different filter coffees one after each other in rotation

  • 100ml coffee + 25ml cow milk (market top seller)

  • 100ml coffee + 25ml Oatly Barista


For each test there was always one interviewer and one person doing the tasting.  

  • 50% of the consumers started with coffee with cow milk and 50% of the consumers started with coffee with Oatly Barista


The coffee was served in a highly sophisticated and ultra highly technical white unbranded paper cup with a lid with a cup of water to have in between. 

“YOU PROBABLY USED A FILTER COFFEE MACHINE THAT WAS SET UP TO MAKE OATLY BARISTA TEST BETTER IN COFFEE, MAYBE YOU EVEN MADE THE MACHINE SO YOU KNEW IT WOULD MAKE PEOPLE PREFER OATLY! AND YOU PROBABLY MADE OAT SYMPATHETIC COFFEE OR YOU PUT SOME OATS IN THE COFFEE OR YOU ARE FRIENDS WITH THE ALIENS WHO BUILT THE PYRAMIDS AND THEY MADE PEOPLE PREFER OATLY IN COFFEE TO COW’S MILK USING TELEPATHY!”

The coffee machine was one of Amazon’s bestsellers and the coffee used the most popular brand of coffee in Germany.

We don’t have any alien friends…yet.

 The Result  

After all the coffee tasting in a neutral room of an independent institute was done, they asked the test groups “Which coffee did you like better? And if you had to choose, which coffee would you go for?” and a result appeared! (It was probably processed by some clever people who understand numbers and probably didn’t just ‘appear’)

…And it said… 53% of people in Germany prefer coffee with Oatly Barista in compared to coffee with cow’s milk. 

*Source: Tchibo Coffee Report 2024 / Statista