Farmers grow them mainly to feed livestock, but oats also provide nourishing food for many people. Oats are a cereal grain and belong to the same family of plants as wheat, rice, corn, and barley. Oats have a higher food value than any other cereal grain. About 60 percent of the oats grown in the United States are used as feed for livestock. Oats are the best grain to feed horses.
Many farmers use the straw from oats as bedding for their livestock.
Russia is, by far, the leading oat-growing country. The stem ends in a head called a panicle, which consists of many small branches. The majority of oat plants have from 40 to 50 spikelets. Most spikelets contain two seeds, each enclosed by a husk called the hull. The hull must be removed before the seeds can be processed into oatmeal or other food products.