A US team developing a “first-of-its-kind” sweetpotato milk has received the backing of local farmers in its bid to build a new market for waste veg and “stabilise the regional economy”.
It comes after the Rootsii project at Appalachian State University secured a $1.82m grant earlier this year to turn sweetpotatoes into dairy-free milk, ice cream, and yoghurts.
The project is based in North Carolina where around 60% of US sweetpotatoes are grown, yet about 40% of the raw product can be lost between the field and the store shelf, costing farmers over $13m a year.
The North Carolina Sweetpotato Commission (NCSC), a nonprofit corporation made up of over 300 sweetpotato producers and packers, has now partnered with the team to help bring the idea to supermarket shelves within two years.
A new dairy alt pathway
“Rootsii offers a new pathway to revitalise demand for sweetpotatoes and stabilise the regional agricultural economy,” said professor Brett Taubman, who founded the Rootsi project along with fermentation sciences lab manager Daniel Parker.
The milk has already been developed with Rootsii now set to begin consumer testing, shelf-life validation, production scale-up, and commercialisation.
“By creating new opportunities for underutilised sweetpotatoes and fostering collaboration across the value chain, we are excited to support continued innovation within our industry,” said Michelle Grainger, the NCSC’s executive director.
To make the milk, the Rootsii team has created a patent-pending process that uses enzymes to break down a sweetpotatoes’ long-chain starches.
How sweetpotato milk is made
The product also contains chia seeds as the emulsifier, a yeast-derived protein, and coconut oil. The coconut oil will eventually be replaced with muscadine grape seed oil, a waste product of the North Carolina wine industry.
It’s described as having a smooth, rich taste and texture compared to other non-dairy milks, and a natural, mild sweetness without any added sugar. It’s also rich in micronutrients like vitamins A and C, potassium, and magnesium.
The team pointed to sweetpotato milk’s strong environmental record with it requiring only a fraction of the water needed for almond milk.
