Fulwood oat milk maker Oato wins at the Taste Lancashire Producer Awards

Oat milk may not be the first thing that springs to mind when people think of Lancashire food, but a business in Fulwood is changing that. Oato, which makes its drinks in Preston, has added a county title to a growing collection of awards.

In February 2026 Oato won the 'pantry, preserved and ready to eat' award at the Taste Lancashire Producer Awards, which are run by Marketing Lancashire. The awards were held alongside the Lancashire Tourism Awards at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool and were sponsored by Preston-based Booths.

The company said the award was "great recognition for what we're building here – a sustainable, locally-rooted business that's competing nationally."

Oato was founded in 2019 and has grown quickly since. It now operates from a 55,000 square foot production facility in Fulwood, and the site is powered by 600 solar panels, which fits neatly with the sustainable approach the business describes.

The latest win builds on recognition further afield. Oato has collected Great Taste Awards in both 2024 and 2025, and it also won at The Grocer awards in 2024.

Its relationship with the Taste Lancashire awards goes back to the very start. When finalists for the inaugural awards were announced in December 2024, Oato was listed in the Drinks category as an oat milk producer. For the 2026 awards it was shortlisted in the pantry, preserved and ready to eat category, and went on to take the title.

Fellow Preston business Williams Handbaked, the family bakery at Preston Docks, also won on the night, taking the Bakery, Pies and Pasties award and giving the city two winners.

The company's story has been reaching new audiences too. In early 2026 it was announced that the journey of the award-winning Fulwood oat milk business would be shared at an International Women's Day event.

For shoppers who want to buy local, it is good to know that a dairy alternative can come from the same corner of Lancashire as so much of the county's other produce, made in a factory running on the power of the sun.