Non-Dairy Creamer is a substitute for real dairy cream. In North America, it is primarily used for coffee.
It may be powdered or liquid. The most well-known powdered one is Coffee Mate, made by Carnation.
In the UK, a liquid Non-Dairy Cream is made by Elmlea, as single or double-cream, available in chiller section in tubs. The standard-size tubs of it are 10 oz / 284ml. It may be used as a dessert topping.
As well, Nestlé also makes a non-dairy dessert topping, tinned.
Many aren’t truly non-dairy: they will often contain sodium caseinate, which is derived from milk. Though the US government considers sodium caseinate non-dairy, these products would be classified as dairy under Jewish kosher law owing to its presence.
History Notes
The proof of concept soy-based coffee cream was developed experimentally by Robert Boyer and other researchers at the Carver Laboratories in Greenfield Village, Dearborn, Michigan (funded by Henry Ford) in the early 1930s.
Coffee Rich was introduced in America 1960. It was was based on coconut oil and sold frozen. By the mid 1970s, the coconut oil had been switched fully to soy oil.