Is Oatly Vegan?

Oatly is a Swedish brand founded in the 1990s and is now the biggest oat-based dairy alternative company in the world. Its product line spans oat drinks (Original, Full Fat, Low Fat, Unsweetened, Barista Edition, Chocolate, Hot Cocoa, Vanilla, and new flavored Barista editions in Caramel, Coconut, Vanilla, Churros, and Popcorn), chilled oat milks, creamers (Sweet and Creamy, Vanilla, Caramel), frozen desserts (Vanilla, Chocolate, Strawberry, Mint Chip, Coffee, Salted Caramel, Fudge Brownie, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, and more), Oatgurt yogurt-style products (Plain, Turkish, Greek Style, Strawberry, Vanilla), custard (UK and Europe), cooking cream, fraiche, and creamy oat spreads (Plain, Garden Herbs, Tomato Basil, Garlic Cucumber).

None of these contain honey, dairy, eggs, or other animal products. US products carry Certified Vegan, Non-GMO Project Verified, and Certified Gluten-Free labels.

The base across all lines is oats and water, with plant oils (rapeseed or coconut), plant-based stabilizers, and vitamins. The only reason a strict ethical vegan might avoid Oatly is not the ingredients but the corporate structure: Blackstone (whose CEO donated to political campaigns many vegans oppose) holds a minority stake, and parent investor Verlinvest owns some non-vegan brands.

Ethical Consumer gave Oatly low overall scores despite its clean ingredient record. That is a personal ethics call, not a product-ingredients call.

For the purposes of whether the food you are buying is vegan: yes, completely.