Why do my oats look dark or burnt?

Please be advised that our oats go through several processing steps, one of which includes kiln drying. The process is tightly controlled and monitored; however, some oat groats can become darker than others in the process. This is a characteristic of all products dried using kiln drying technology. Process controls and product inspection are in place to minimize the number of dark particles in our product. The dark particles are a visual issue and not a food safety issue.