Cultivation research makes oats suitable for the market

Oats contain many health-promoting substances. And the grain contains no gluten, a substance that makes some people ill. But yields need to be increased to make the crop economically profitable. This is what Applied Plant Research is working on.

Oat is a fantastic crop. It contains no gluten, which makes it a good food for people who are allergic to gluten, people with coeliak disease. And the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) concluded that oat constituents are lowering the blood cholesterol level, which reduces the risk of heart diseases.

Cultivation

A drawback of oat is the fact that there are a number of cultivation risks. Breeding of oat had no priority over recent years. Many of the varieties have rather long straw which makes them prone to lodging: the plants are easily falling over, which reduces yields.

gluten free oats

But oat also has a number of advantages. The crop is doing well on poor soils and crop protection is hardly needed. The plants also have a deep and extensive root system, which improves soil structure.

Other oat varieties

Scientists of Applied Plant Research are now attempting to improve the perspectives of oat cultivation, e.g., by testing varieties from abroad. They are recording yields and sensitivity to lodging. And they also look at the sensitivity to fungi that are affecting food safety. And they are providing insight into the advantages of the crop to make it easier for farmers to weigh the advantages and disadvantages.

The scientist are not only improving cultivation but together with Plant Research International, also part of Wageningen UR, they are focusing on the other links of the chain as well. They are, e.g., investigating how a special chain can be set up for gluten-free oat, of which all links should be guaranteed gluten-free: from harvest to transport, storage and processing.