London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 01, 2026

Starbucks is running out of oat milk a month after adding it to menus nationwide

Starbucks is running out of oat milk a month after adding it to menus nationwide

Just as Grape Nuts come back to stores, Americans are faced with yet another shortage — this time, of oat milk at some Starbucks cafes.

Starbucks rolled out oat milk lattes at about 1,300 stores in the Midwest last year. It added Oatly-brand oat milk to the menu nationally in March.

But now, a mere month later, some Starbucks' oat milk fans say they have found themselves unable to order their new favorite drinks.

Some are particularly put out by the absence of the iced brown sugar shaken espresso, made with oat milk, which has amassed its own fans online (one favorably compared it to "a brown sugar pop tart.")

Others want oat milk or nothing. "Just throw my whole drink away tbh," wrote one sad Twitter user. Another used no fewer than 12 cry-face emojis to express their pain.

Starbucks said on Tuesday that some locations were out of oat milk but didn't specify how widespread the problem was.

"Due to high demand, some customers may experience a temporary shortage of oat milk at their store," a Starbucks spokesperson told CNN Business on Tuesday, adding that customers can expect oat milk to be back "soon" without offering a specific time frame. In the meantime, they might consider swapping in soy milk, almond milk or coconut milk instead, the company suggested.

Starbucks is not attributing the shortage to the popularity of specific beverages, the spokesperson said, but noted that the drinks launched this spring have been resonating with customers. Those include the brown sugar espresso, as well as an  iced chocolate almond milk shaken espresso and a honey oat milk latte.

The coffee chain has leaned into its oat milk lineup as consumer demand for plant-based milk alternatives continues to grow. US oat milk sales grew 138% over the past year, according to Nielsen data.

"Probably the most dominant shift in consumer behavior is this whole shift to plant-based," said Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson during a January call with analysts. "This is why we've introduced all the alternative milks, whether it's almond milk, soy milk [or] oat milk," he said.

Oatly has also been getting attention.

Over the summer, the company scored a $200 million investment from a Blackstone-led investment group that included Oprah Winfrey, Natalie Portman, Jay-Z's entertainment agency and former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz. In February, it said it filed confidential IPO forms with the SEC. The move is "the first official step towards pursuing a potential IPO," Sara Fletcher, an Oatly spokesperson, said at the time.

As Starbucks (SBUX) sees high demand for its oat milk products, Oatly, its supplier, is struggling with its own problems. The company has struggled with supply constraints because of pandemic-related construction delays on a facility in Utah, which was supposed to open last year and is only starting to come online now, Oatly said.

Starbucks and Oatly didn't comment on whether the supply constraints were directly related to the temporary shortages that some Starbucks locations are facing.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Southwest England Faces Flood Alerts After Heavy Autumn Storms
UK Expands Funding for Rapid Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
Welsh Government Approves Funding to Upgrade South Wales Transport
Northern Ireland Tensions Rise as Orange Order Rejects Drumcree Compromise
NHS Leaders Back Early Design of Proposed National Care Service
More Than One-Third of Regional UK Universities Face Financial Deficits
UK Current Account Deficit Narrows as Cross-Border Financial Flows Remain Strong
Bank of England and FCA Issue New Rules for Stablecoins and Digital Assets
MI5 Warns UK Universities Over Research Links With Chinese Institutions
UK Energy Price Cap Rises 4% as Electricity VAT Is Temporarily Suspended
Equity Calls for UK Personality Rights to Protect Performers From AI Replication
OpenAI Pauses Advanced Model Training Following Safety Concerns
Scottish Government Proposes Replacing 32 Councils With Larger Regional Authorities
Ofgem Raises UK Household Energy Price Cap by 4% From October
UK Counter-Terrorism Police Continue Investigation After Five Arrests Near RAF Fairford
OECD Cuts UK 2027 Growth Forecast to 1%
Labour Says State Pension Triple Lock Remains Protected Through Current Parliament
Andy Burnham Pledges National Care Service With Free Social Care in England
Six Flags Permanently Shuts Landmark X2 Roller Coaster Following Safety Scandals
Metropolitan Police Rule Out Terrorism in Golders Green Stabbing Investigation
Lithium-Ion Battery Identified as Cause of Fatal Merseyside House Fire
UK Department Rejects New Sea Use Framework Due to Stakeholder Fatigue
Major Thames Water Pipe Burst Causes School Closures in London
Aldi Commits £900 Million to Expand UK Supermarket Network
Scottish Affairs Committee Warns Skills Shortages Threaten Defence Sector Expansion
Parliamentary Committee Warns Northern Ireland Budget Deadlock is Stalling Economic Growth
NHS Hospitals in England Face Severe Shortages of Essential Medications
Home Secretary Signals Major Overhaul of UK Immigration and Leave to Remain Policies
Chancellor Promises New Job Schemes Alongside Strict Fiscal Discipline
Energy Secretary Proposes Taxpayer-Funded Green Transition and National Electricity Grid
UK Government to Renationalise Avanti West Coast Railway Franchise in March
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Pledges Major Social Care and Infrastructure Reforms
Five Suspects Released on Bail Following Alleged Bomb Plot Near RAF Fairford
UK Diesel Prices Hit Record High of 199p Per Litre
Transport for Wales and Network Rail Complete Electrification of South Wales Metro
Defra Expands Incentives for Sustainable Farming and Biodiversity in England
Northern Ireland Executive Approves Funding Package to Resolve Public Sector Pay Disputes
Universities UK Warns of Financial Insolvency Risks for Higher Education Institutions
UK Prisons Activate Emergency Protocols to Manage Capacity Pressures
UK Government Establishes New Safety Standards for Frontier AI Models
Home Office Tightens Skilled Worker Visa Requirements and Dependent Rules
Ministry of Defence Restructures Royal Navy Frigate Procurement to Prevent Overruns
UK Government Mandates New Housing Targets to Address National Shortage
UK and Scottish Governments Reach Agreement on North Sea Energy Transition
NHS Launches Digital Overhaul to Reduce Surgical Backlogs in England
Bank of England Holds Interest Rates as Service Sector Inflation Persists
UK Chancellor Announces Fiscal Consolidation Measures to Stabilize National Debt
RNLI Chief Executive Condemns Misinformation and Abuse Targeting Volunteer Crews
Metropolitan Police Charge Swindon Man with Assisting Foreign Intelligence Services
British Intelligence Report Warns Environmental Collapse Threatens Global Defense Infrastructure
×