Oat boom drives cultivation trials in Lapland, Finland

Demand for oats has been increasing for several years, with both the oat processor Boreal and the Finnish Oat Association referring to an “oat boom” that has already enhanced the use of oats in food applications without any signs of slowing down. “Food-grade oats have seen rising demand for many years, and there remains a strong interest in quality oats,” says Boreal’s oat breeder, Hanna Haikka.

In Lapland, a project is underway to trial dozens of oat varieties to identify those best suited to the northern climate. Over 30 different oat varieties are currently being grown in Tervola, alongside 400 types of pre-breeding oat material. This experimental cultivation provides valuable insights for farmers and oat breeders regarding how different varieties perform under northern conditions and the impact of day length on growth.

“The growing conditions in the north are gradually improving for oat cultivation, but no one is yet breeding suitable varieties for this area,” notes Juho Hautsalo, the project leader from the Natural Resources Institute Finland. The long-term plan is to explore the characteristics of the tested oat varieties to breed even better-suited ones for northern climates. There are hopes to attract more oat farmers to Lapland; this year, there are 37 oat farmers in the region, cultivating 300 hectares—down from 74 farmers in 2015.

Currently, around half of the oats produced in Finland are used for animal feed, while the other half is used for food. Similar oat trials are being conducted in northern Norway, northern Sweden, Iceland, and Ireland. The Natural Resources Institute is leading an EU-funded project aimed at increasing oat cultivation in northern regions.