A Quick History of Oatmeal

Have you ever stopped to think about oatmeal? Oatmeal can be made from ground oats, steel-cut oats, crushed oats, or rolled oats. It's pretty much the perfect breakfast; it has all the nutrients your body needs to start the day right. Yet, it's pretty obvious that oatmeal isn't a brand new concoction. Oatmeal has been around for a long time in some form or another. Did people hundreds of years ago realize they needed protein to start their day?

Actually, it is even more impressive than that. Oatmeal has been around for thousands of years, not hundreds! The oldest archeological findings of oat grains date from Ancient Egypt and were found among remains that make them about 4 millennia old. That doesn't mean Pharaohs were sitting around with a bowl of oatmeal, though. Researchers think these oats were probably weeds and not cultivated crops. The oldest cultivated oats were found in caves in Switzerland and they date back to the Bronze Age. Cultivated, purposefully grown oats were mentioned for the first time in literature in the 1st century AD. That's pretty impressive that something has survived that long as a meal people enjoy eating. You probably can't say that about much else!

Oatmeal became very popular in Scotland in the 15th century. Scotland has a short and wet growing season, meaning oats thrive in the region much more so than other plants like wheat. Even today, some wholesale oatmeal comes from Scotland. The Scotish people centuries ago prepared oatmeal by soaking oats overnight in salted water and then cooking it on a low heat in the morning. Oats came to North America in the early 17th century with immigrants of Scottish and British descent. Because it was a relatively inexpensive and easy way to feed a family, the meal kept its popularity.

Today there are many different ways an oatmeal can be prepared. It starts with the oats themselves, as prepared and handled by the manufacturers who make wholesale oatmeal. Some oatmeal has ground oats, while other types use steel-cut oats, crushed oats, or rolled oats. The way the oats have been prepared affects how long it takes you to make the oatmeal. Nearly all modern oatmeal adds spices, fruit, and other delicious ingredients to make it tastier. You can even get oatmeal with marshmallow dinosaurs in it! Oatmeal doesn't need to be eaten on its own; it's also a popular ingredient for baking desserts like cookies and cakes.

Oatmeal is pretty amazing! Oatmeal, bought from a wholesale oatmeal supplier and then sent to a store where it is purchased by you, is a food that has been enjoyed for centuries and it still is today. Your oatmeal may come from Europe, Asia, or South America, but you can eat a similar meal to the Scottish people centuries ago. Of course, you'll probably want to add a little brown sugar and apples to yours!

We at Inmolisa, use the most efficient technique to produce, market, distribute, and store all kinds of cereals from Latin America to everywhere in the world.