WHICH COFFEE CREAMERS ARE CLOSEST TO HOMEMADE?
NON-DAIRY COFFEE CREAMERS >> FAR FROM HOMEMADE™
Information updated August 2023
According to Statista 2023, Nestlé’s Coffee mate is the #1 coffee additive in the U.S.
NESTLE COFFEE MATE: Here’s a comparison of Nestlé Coffee mate Original Powder vs. Liquid (Source: Nestlé Coffee mate Web site 8/23) They both have multiple ingredients Not In Kitchen™ >> commercial ingredients we would never have in our home kitchens such as Soybean Oil.
Original Coffee mate Powder is banned at Whole Foods for containing 1-3 Hydrogenated Oil(s) which Whole Foods cite as “Unacceptable in food”. (Source: Amazon Whole Foods Web site 8/23) Essentially, the whole product is made from commercial ingredients. Corn Syrup Solids are the #1 ingredient in Coffee mate Powder, followed by a series of Hydrogenated Oils.
Water is the #1 ingredient in Nestlé Coffee mate Liquid >> ingredients are always listed in descending order of amount. Corn Syrup Solids are #2.
Shown below, the Coffee mate liquid inside the Singles packaging is not the same as the liquid inside the bottle:
MISLEADING PACKAGE VISUALS ON COFFEE MATE: None of the ingredient lists for Nestlé Coffee mate flavors note the real ingredients which are photographed for the packages. For example, there is no real Kahlúa or Cream/Crème listed as ingredients in the Kahlúa & Crème Coffee mate even though the common drink is shown on the front. There is no Vanilla listed in the French Vanilla Coffee mate which shows a Vanilla blossom and beans, and no Coconut listed as an ingredient in the Coconut Crème Coffee mate which shows chunks of real coconut on the front.
FROM AN INGREDIENT PERSPECTIVE, GENERAL MILLS CINNAMON TOAST CRUNCH COFFEE MATE IS UNDIFFERENTIATED vs. THE CINNAMON VANILLA CREME COFFEE MATE FLAVOR: These two Nestlé Coffee mate products are both banned at Whole Foods, have the same ingredients and sugar content and have no real Cinnamon listed as an ingredient.
General Mills compromised a core equity for a licensing payment from Nestlé . . . why does General Mills approve a Coffee mate product with no real Cinnamon ingredient which is branded Cinnamon Toast Crunch?
MISLEADING VISUAL: There is no cinnamon in Nestlé Coffee mate Cinnamon Toast Crunch which is licensed from General Mills, yet they show real cinnamon sticks in this promotional shot for the product:
Since Coffee mate flavors’ ingredient lists do not include the real ingredients from which these flavors are derived, the ingredient listing is basically the same for all of the flavors, with some slight variation here and there. The only difference is which Artificial Flavors and Natural Flavors are added by Nestlé.
Seen below, LAND O LAKES MINI MOO’S ARE BANNED AT WHOLE FOODS: No refrigeration is needed for this Land O Lakes product which includes an ingredient banned at Whole Foods: DATEM. (Sources: Land O Lakes Web site 8/23, Walmart Web site 8/23, Whole Foods Web site 8/23)
DATEM stands for Diacetyl Tartartic Acid Ester of Mono and Diglycerides which is a commercial emulsifying agent. Mini Moo’s also includes Carrageenan as a Thickening Agent and two Chemical Preservatives, Sodium Citrate and Tetrasodium Pyrophosphate.
DANONE INTERNATIONAL DELIGHT COFFEE CREAMERS: Danone (Dannon North America) owns International Delight Creamers which are all banned at Amazon-owned Whole Foods for Artificial Flavors and Sodium Stearoyl Lactylate. (Sources: Danone International Delight Creamer Web site 8/23; Amazon Whole Foods Web site 8/23)
The three International Delight products shown below all have the same ingredients, even though two are licensed flavors.
Q: Why do you think Hershey and Focus Brands licensed their Brands to be used by Danone in a way which undermines their core equities?
There is no Cinnamon as an ingredient in the Cinnabon International Delight, yet Cinnamon is an essential part of the Cinnabon brand identity. Why would Cinnabon put their name on something with no Cinnamon noted as an ingredient and put a big photograph of their real cinnamon roll on the front?
There is no real Almond, no Coconut and no real Chocolate as ingredients in the Hershey’s Almond Joy International Delight Creamer made by Nestlé, yet these are in the core of the Almond Joy brand.
There is no real chocolate as an ingredient in a product with a valuable Hershey’s chocolate candy endorsement. There is no Cinnamon in a licensed Cinnabon product.
These partnerships enhance Danone’s International Delight equity, while simultaneously slowly eroding those of the Brands they’re licensing because Danone never uses the real ingredients . . . with the parent company approval.
Califia Farms Almond +/or Coconut Cream Coffee Creamers contain multiple ingredients Not In Kitchen — Natural Flavors, Locust Bean Gum, Gellan Gum, Sunflower Lecithin and Potassium Citrate + Calcium Carbonate. (Source: Califia Farms Web site 8/23) There is no Vanilla listed as an ingredient in the Califia Farms Vanilla flavored Almond Milk Creamer even though a Vanilla bean and flower are depicted on the package front. Real Vanilla is wildly expensive. There is no real Hazelnut listed in the Califia Farms Hazelnut Creamer.
Seen below, many Almond +/or Coconut Milk Coffee Creamers contain multiple ingredients Not In Kitchen — Flavors, Gums, Lecithin, Potassium +/or Sodium Salts. (Sources: Brands Web sites 8/23) These include Whole Foods 365 Vanilla Almond Milk (with no real Vanilla listed); Silk Vanilla Almond Creamer (with no real Vanilla listed); Nut Pods Cinnamon Swirl Almond + Coconut Creamer (with no real Cinnamon listed); So Delicious Vanilla Organic Creamer (with no real Vanilla listed), and Blue Diamond Vanilla Almond Breeze Creamer (with no real Vanilla listed). Water is the primary ingredient in all of these products.
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And we leave you with some old ads for coffee creamers . . .
