Hälsa Foods, maker of the first and only 100% clean oat milk yogurts, announces today that it is working with dairy farmers to offer the opportunity to grow organic oats as an alternative to dairy farming, and has assembled a coalition to support them with the conversion process.

The oat yogurt brand, founded by Helena Lumme and Mika Manninen, is using a Scandanavian method which reportedly results in cleaner, more nutritious and higher quality oat crops. Hälsa oats are currently grown in Scandinavia with a zero water footprint, and now the process will be brought to farms in North America.

Oats are exploding internationally right now and are emerging as the most popular dairy alternative, with +184% more restaurants adding oat alternatives to their menus last year as consumers showed +146% more interest in them as a dairy alternative.

Hälsa states that it has assembled a coalition of Scandinavian organic farmers, researchers and environmental experts to support the conversion process, and will put together a guide book and a video that will serve as a blueprint for other dairy farms on how to start growing premium oats.

The company explains that the oat is a resilient grain that also provide excellent soil erosion control and reduce the need for herbicides. Oats require much less water than other crops, while almonds, cashews or coconuts used for nut-based milks require excessive amounts of the planet’s fresh water resources.

“Oats are one of the most environmentally friendly ingredients for making plant-based milks and other products,” Hälsa co-founders Helena Lumme and Mika Manninen explained. “We are currently importing our organic oats from Scandinavia because we cannot find the quality that meets our standard in the United States. At the same time, US dairy farms are struggling due to slumping milk sales. So we thought, why not come up with a solution that benefits both of us and our planet?”