SOW YOUR wild oats

Oats are a naturally occurring crop in Britain, but they were considered to be little more than a weed by our early ancestors. Indeed, the Ancient Greeks and Romans considered oats to be a diseased version of wheat – the Romans referred to the Germanic tribes as ‘the oat-eating barbarians’! For many centuries, they were principally used to feed farm animals - less than 5% of oat crops are grown for human consumption. But, from a health point of view, they have many benefits – they’re easily digestible, making them a suitable