The competition milk alternatives is growing fierce, with sales of almond milk skyrocketing among calorie counters and folks with food allergies--causing two fake milk makers to battle furiously for shelf space.

Almond milk was a big reason milk alternative sales jumped 13 percent last year, and shoppers are willing to pay premium prices, The Wall Street Journal's Anne Marie Chaker reports. The product has been around two decades, but it wasn't till 2009 that store owners began nestling the cartons next to cow's milk. Blue Diamond started testing its Almond Breeze among Latinos, who are more prone to lactose intolerance, and sales were great. The brand dominated almond milk sales until a year ago, when Silk, the soy milk maker, introduced its own almond milk. Soon Silk began an aggressive marketing campaign, offering deep discounts through coupons.

"Ever since,"Chaker reports, "couponing and discounting has been fast and furious in a race to win new customers and build brand loyalty." Here's the key moment in the piece, where the general manager of consumer products at Blue Diamond is quoted:

"It's a dog fight," Mr. O'Shaughnessy says. If a customer buys some Silk Pure Almond, she may receive a coupon for Almond Breeze at checkout.

Fierce.

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Elspeth Reeve