To make vegan bread or rolls, choose a plant-based drink rather than lactose-free milk of animal origin: removing the lactose doesn’t make milk dairy-free. You could use an unsweetened soya or oat drink, depending on the ingredients you want in your recipe. If you require third-party vegan certification, check that it applies to the exact product you’re buying.
When making a dough without animal products, the first thing to distinguish is lactose-free milk from a plant-based drink. If you need a certified vegan product, also check that the certification applies to the specific product you’ve chosen.
You want to replace the milk in a dough without deliberately adding vanilla or sugar. The ingredient lists for Carrefour Bio and Bjorg unsweetened soya drinks make it easy to tell these products apart from flavoured versions.
If your only requirement is to avoid lactose, and you don’t need a vegan product, still check what it’s made from: the Lactel Matin Léger and Candia+ products mentioned here are still dairy milk.
For vegan bread, first rule out products containing milk. Then compare the ingredients in plant-based drinks to find one that suits your recipe and, if necessary, check the certification for the exact product.
Worth considering: if you want to replace milk without deliberately adding flavour; Bjorg recommends this use in its cooking advice.
Check: soya is listed as an allergen for the products concerned, and Bjorg’s advice isn’t based on a specific bread-baking test.
Worth considering: if you want an oat-based option and its ingredient list suits your recipe.
Check: Carrefour Sensation oat drink, which is labelled “vegan”, also contains sunflower oil and pea protein. This label alone doesn’t confirm third-party certification.
Best suited to: recipes that include dairy and where avoiding lactose is the main requirement.
Limitation: Lactel Matin Léger and Candia+ contain milk, so they aren’t suitable for a vegan recipe.
| Criteria | What to check | Who is this for? |
|---|---|---|
| Ingredients and certification | Check the ingredients for milk or milk derivatives. If certification is essential, look for the logo and check the exact product on the packaging. | I want to make a dough without animal-derived ingredients and be able to tell the difference between a “vegan” label and a certification. Around 42% of consumers prioritise this check. |
| Suitability for the recipe | Compare the ingredients in an unsweetened version with those in a sweetened or flavoured one, then adjust your recipe if needed. | To stay in control of the ingredients in a savoury loaf, I’d rather not add an unintended flavour. This is a priority for around 33% of consumers. |
| Availability of the product | Check the pack size and availability of your chosen drink at your store or for your chosen collection option. | When I’m planning a batch, I need to be able to get the same plant-based drink to follow my recipe. Around 25% of consumers put availability first. |
The ingredient lists for Lactel Matin Léger and Candia+ include milk. Their reduced lactose content doesn’t change the fact that they’re animal-derived.
For a vegan dough, check for milk and dairy derivatives before considering the product’s other features.
The word “vegan” in the name of Carrefour Sensation oat drink doesn’t, by itself, confirm that it’s certified by a third-party organisation.
If this level of assurance matters to you, check the packaging for the logo, certifying organisation and product concerned.
A flavoured version may add ingredients you hadn’t planned to include in your recipe. Carrefour’s product information for Bjorg vanilla soya drink lists cane sugar and natural vanilla flavouring.
For your first attempt, look at an unsweetened version and decide separately what else to add to your dough.
Carrefour’s product information includes an unsweetened Carrefour Bio soya drink and a Carrefour Sensation oat drink labelled “vegan”.
Bjorg makes an unsweetened soya drink and recommends using plant-based drinks instead of milk in recipes.
Matin Léger is lactose-free milk, so it’s different from a plant-based drink for making vegan bread.
Candia+ is lactose-free milk, not a plant-based alternative to milk.
No, not if it’s still dairy milk. Lactel Matin Léger and Candia+ contain milk despite their reduced lactose content. For a recipe without animal products, look instead at the ingredients in a plant-based drink.
Choose an unsweetened product with ingredients that suit your recipe. The product information for Carrefour Bio and Bjorg unsweetened soya drinks differs from that for Bjorg vanilla soya drink, which lists cane sugar and natural vanilla flavouring.
No, the label alone doesn’t prove that a product has third-party certification. If you need a certified product, check the packaging for the logo and certifying organisation, and make sure they apply to the product and pack size you’re buying.
First check the ingredients in your chosen drink and what else your recipe already includes. For sweet recipes, Bjorg recommends taking into account the sugar in some plant-based drinks. This is the brand’s general advice and doesn’t guarantee a particular result for a specific bread dough.