Beware the almond milk effect

Think twice before you post your almond milk latte on Pinterest. Photo / iStock

Your tiny house might be good for the environment, but your almond milk addiction sure isn't.

Almond milk is "the" milk to have these days. It has overtaken soy milk sales in some supermarket chains.

Drinkers of the healthy alternative to cow's milk are likely to align themselves with hip, savvy, conscious consumers but the damage they are inadvertently causing the environment is staggering.

Almond milk has been on the rise since recent health scares put people off soy. Almonds are one of the best foods you can eat, though they only make up two per cent of the milk. The rest is made up of water and sugar.

The problem lies in the cultivation. Eighty per cent of almonds come from drought-stricken California.

The Guardian reports that farmers are drilling deep for water in the region which can cause vital problems with infrastructure such as bridges and roads and can even cause earthquakes.

Furthermore, with ongoing drought, drilling to pump water is erasing an essential resource.

But don't biff out that almond milk smoothie yet!

While this presents an issue for the majority of the world's almond milk drinkers, here in the Pacific, we primarily enjoy almonds from Australia.

Just be aware: it's not all that good for you anyway.