Unlock the Secrets of Whole30 Compliant Almond Milk: Your Ultimate Guide!

Finding Whole30 approved almond milk can feel like navigating a minefield, with sneaky additives, sugars, and questionable ingredients lurking in many brands. Fortunately, there are plenty of options available if you know what to look for. This article provides a comprehensive guide to Whole30 compliant almond milk and coconut milk, including brands and where to find them, and even delves into making your own.

What is Whole30?

Introduced in 2009 by certified sports nutritionists Melissa and Dallas Hartwig, accompanied by a bestselling book, Whole30 is a 30-day dietary reset designed to help you identify how certain foods affect your body. While Melissa Urban, the co-founder and CEO of Whole30, touted the program's ongoing popularity in late 2024, it’s past its 2016 - 2018 peak when it was arguably the diet or lifestyle plan to follow. Unlike the Keto or Paleo diets, which are often adopted as long-term lifestyles, Whole30 is intended as a temporary cleanse.

The program involves eliminating specific food groups for 30 days and then systematically reintroducing them to observe their effects. This helps you build a personalized eating plan based on your body's unique needs.

Whole30: More Than Just Weight Loss

The Whole30 program isn’t primarily focused on weight loss. Instead, its founders emphasize its purpose as a complete reset to identify potential problem foods and promote healthier eating habits. While weight management is a welcome side effect for some, the core aim is to improve overall well-being.

The Challenges of Whole30

While Whole30 offers numerous benefits, it's not without its challenges. The program demands strict adherence, with no slip-ups allowed. A single cheat, like an office cookie, requires you to start the 30 days over. Justine Roth, a registered dietitian who tested Whole30, describes a draining cycle. You may start with a period of “I’m really doing it” euphoria, like during the first week of sticking to a New Year’s resolution. Then it gets hard, with bouts of hunger, moodiness, sluggishness (as your body learns to live without carbs), stomach issues, and (if you cheat) guilt.

Read also: Decadent Keto Brownies

However, the Whole30 program recognizes these difficulties and encourages preparation. This includes setting a start date, clearing your kitchen of non-compliant foods, arranging support from family and friends, and creating an emergency snack kit.

Whole30 vs. Other Diets

Both Keto and Whole30 are hostile to sugars and grains.

While Whole30 shares similarities with diets like Paleo and Keto, there are key differences. All three encourage eating whole, unprocessed foods and restrict food groups like legumes, grains, and dairy. However, Whole30 leans towards lean meats, while Paleo allows for fattier cuts.

Almond Milk and Whole30: What to Look For

Yes, you can! Dairy is ruled out for your Whole30, but you absolutely CAN use nut-based milks if the ingredients are compliant. Finding Whole30 approved and compliant Almond Milk Brands can be super tough for a few reasons. The primary challenge when selecting almond milk for Whole30 is identifying brands without added sugars, sweeteners, or non-compliant additives. Many commercial almond milks contain ingredients like carrageenan, locust bean gum, sunflower lecithin, and gellan gum, which are not allowed on the program.

Unapproved Ingredients: When searching for Whole30 Approved Almond Milk brands, people ask me all the time: What ingredients to avoid in Almond Milk? Is your almond milk not listed? Here is a list of unapproved ingredients… If you see one of these ingredients, the almond milk is not approved for your Whole30.

Why Avoid Certain Ingredients?

Many of Whole30’s restrictions aim to combat chronic inflammation, a common factor in various health concerns. Added sugars, fried foods, refined carbohydrates, and vegetable oils may all play a role. The thought came around because of the carrageenan in a lot of almond milks…

Carrageenan: Carrageenan is a substance extracted from red and purple seaweeds, Chondrus crispus, which is more widely known as Irish moss. It consists of a mixture of polysaccharides. The short answer, yes. It is at the very least a known inflammatory, and we know that inflammation is the building block of disease. It has been linked to ulcerations, and GI cancers, and other stomach problems. From Dr. “Some animal studies have linked degraded forms of carrageenan (the type not used in food) to ulcerations and cancers of the gastrointestinal tract. Good news: NO. Companies are catching on that this is an ingredient that consumers DON’T want in their products. Even in the last couple of years, companies are removing carrageenan from their almond milks. There are SO many clean, non-toxic and carrageenan-free almond milks that are NOT cancerous, and even beneficial for your health!

Navigating Vanilla Almond Milk

Naturally, some vanilla almond milks contain vanilla extract, and until this point, weren’t approved for your Whole30. Now they are! In December of 2019, there was a change to the Whole30 program rules! Now all extracts are approved for your Whole30!

Whole30 Compliant Almond Milk Brands

Here’s more than 25 Whole30 compliant almond milk and Whole30 compliant coconut milk options that are readily available for purchase. This list contains a variety of brands and store options for you to pick up Whole30 approved almond milk without any of the above ingredients. There’s also a few Whole30 approved coconut milk options listed. Remember, always double-check the ingredient list to ensure compliance, as formulations can change.

Aldi: Yes, there are a few different almond milks from Aldi that are Whole30. I LOVE ALDI! I even made this super handy PDF of Whole30 Compliant finds at ALDI! Some are! The Friendly Farms Unsweetened Almond Milk and Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milks ARE Whole30 compliant! See the ingredients below. Available at Aldi. Available at Shoprite.
Blue Diamond Almond Breeze: Good news! All of the Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Almond Milk sizes are now compliant! They removed carrageenan from the shelf-stable size! There was a time that some sizes did contain carrageenan, and those varieties were NOT Whole30 compliant at the time… But good news! Available at Target. Available at Safeway. Available at Kroger. Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Original AlmondmilkAmazonAlmond Breeze doesn't have the shortest ingredient list, but everything on it is Whole30-compliant. Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Vanilla AlmondmilkAmazonYou better believe it: There are zero grams of sugar in this unsweetened vanilla nut milk.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowBlue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Original Almond Cashew BlendAmazonAlmonds + cashews = less calories than traditional almond milk.Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Cashew BlendAmazonThe addition of cashews makes this blend super creamy. (Psst: Cashews are a favorite source of healthy fat for Whole30-ers.) Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowBlue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Original Almond Coconut MilkAmazonAlmond-coconut milk will give your morning Whole30-approved smoothie a thicker consistency. Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Coconut MilkAmazonGMOs are a big no-no on the diet; luckily, this blend is made with non-GMO nuts.Advertisement
- Where to Find: Blue Diamond Whole30 Almond Milk options can be found on Amazon, Thrive Market, and in all major grocery retailers such as Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, Fresh Thyme and more.
Califia Farms: Califia Farms also makes great almond milk. I love their Better Half instead of half and half. Califia Farms Organic Almond Homestyle NutmilkAmazonThe brand's newest line is all organic and has the strong nutty taste of a blend you'd make at home.Califia Farms Unsweetened AlmondmilkAmazonThis classic almond milk packs 50% more calcium than traditional milk.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowCalifia Farms Unsweetened Vanilla AlmondmilkAmazonMany vanilla varieties contain off-limits ingredients, but not Califia Farms' Unsweetened Vanilla bottle.
- Where to find: Widely available on Amazon, in Target, Whole Foods, Fresh Thyme, Walmart and more.
Elmhurst: Elmhurst Unsweetened Milked AlmondsElmhurstThis is as close as you'll get to homemade stuff, with only two ingredients: almonds and water. Expect a super nut-forward taste because of that.Advertisement
Friendly Farms: Friendly Farms Unsweetened Original AlmondmilkFriendly FarmsYou know Aldi's got a viable option: This Friendly Farms carton is always on shelves.
Kirkland: Kirkland Organic Unsweetened Vanilla Almond MilkKirklandOf course you can find something that fits the bill at Costco. Advertisement
MALK: MALK almond milk can be found at Whole Foods, Fresh Thyme, many co-ops, and other health oriented grocery stores. Malk Unsweetened Pure Almond MilkMalkThis stuff's made with freshly-shelled sprouted raw almonds, and there are five grams of protein in every serving.Malk Vanilla Pure Almond MilkMalkYep-another vanilla almond milk that's allowed on Whole30. The cute bottle is just an added bonus.Advertisement
New Barn: Where to find: New Barn Whole30 Approved almond milk can be found at major grocery retailers such as Whole Foods, Target, Fresh Thyme, along with many others. New Barn Unsweetened AlmondmilkAmazon
Nutpods: Nutpods - Whole30 Approved almond milk coconut milk blend in original flavor, hazelnut flavor, and vanilla. Nutpods can be purchased from Thrive Market, Amazon, Albertsons’s, Ralph’s, Whole Foods and more.
Silk: Silk Whole30 compliant almond milk can be purchased on Amazon, and at most major grocery stores, including Target, Walmart, Whole Foods, Cub Foods, Fresh Thyme, and more. Silk Unsweetened Almond MilkSilkYou've seen this in literally every grocery store, and now you know: Yes, you can drink it while doing Whole30.Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowSilk Unsweetened Vanilla Almond MilkSilkSilk's unsweetened vanilla carton is fair game, too.Silk Unsweetened Almond Coconut MilkSilkOne cup of this approved milk fulfills nearly half of your daily calcium requirement.Advertisement
Simple Truth: Simple Truth Organic Unsweetened AlmondmilkSimple TruthThis brand is one of Kroger's signature labels…so you know you'll be getting a good deal on it.
Simply Balanced: Simply Balanced Unsweetened Original AlmondmilkTargetYou'll find this stuff at Target.
SO Delicious: You can get SO Delicious Whole30 compliant almond milk from major grocery retailers such as Target, Walmart, Amazon, Whole Foods, and most grocery stores.
Three Trees: Three Trees is available in select Sprouts, Whole Foods, and a variety of health oriented grocery stores.

Making Your Own Whole30 Compliant Almond Milk

Store bought whole30 almond milk does exist, but it’s hard to find and it can be pretty pricey! Typically you’ll only need almonds, a high powered blender and a nut milk bag. Making your own almond milk is a simple and cost-effective way to ensure it meets Whole30 standards. It’s super creamy, tastes rich when added to coffee and recipes, and it’s ridiculously easy. This Homemade Almond Milk is a delicious dairy-free, paleo, whole30 milk alternative.

Ingredients

1 cup raw almonds
3.5 cups (28 oz) filtered water

Instructions

Soak the Almonds: There are two options for soaking almonds.Room Temperature Water: Soak almonds in 3 cups of filtered water for a minimum of 12 hours. To make your own almond milk- soak the almonds for at least 6 hours.
Blend: Make sure to really blend it! You don’t want to under-blend it and then have it be too chunky to strain. It should be relatively smooth when you pour it out of the blender. I really love my Vitamix blender. Combine the soaked almonds and fresh water in a high-powered blender. Blend until smooth and creamy.
Strain: This one is my favorite to use, it’s dishwasher safe, and has held up well for over a year. Pour the mixture through a nut milk bag to separate the pulp from the milk. Squeeze the bag to extract as much liquid as possible.
Store: It’s best to store your almond milk in an airtight glass jar. Make sure to store it in an airtight container! Shake before using/drinking. The almond milk will last 4-5 days in the refrigerator. Homemade almond milk will last 4-5 days in the refrigerator. It may separate, but just shake to combine it again.

Tips for Homemade Almond Milk

Nuts: Nuts- You can make this recipe with any type of nut. Cashews, walnuts, or pecans will all work!
Save the Pulp: Save the pulp! You can use it to make energy bites, dry it out for almond meal… there are lots of options! This post has a lot of good ideas. I’m working on perfecting a cracker recipe with the leftover pulp.. You can make crackers or homemade almond meal with the pulp.
Cost: Is it cheaper to make your own almond milk?Yes, it is cheaper to make your own almond milk. Almonds cost roughly $5 per cup. This recipe uses 1 cup almonds to 3.5 cups water (28 oz) which comes out to 17 cents/oz. The average cost of almond milk from the store is 25-30 cents/oz. Making your own almond milk is slightly cheaper.
Health Benefits: Is homemade almond milk healthy?Yes! Homemade almond milk has no fillers, gums, added sugars, or preservatives. It’s a much healthier alternative to store bought.
Taste: Does homemade almond milk taste better?Yes, homemade almond milk tastes way better than any brand from the store. It’s rich, creamy, and delicious!

Read also: Is Almond Milk Low FODMAP?

tags: #almond #milk #whole30 #compliant