By 2035, the global citizen will eat 15 kilograms of onions annually

In ten years, the global citizen will eat an average of 15 kilograms of onions per year. At the moment, consumption is still around 12.5 to 13 kilograms per person. The biggest eaters do not even come from Africa, although that is where most Dutch onions go. According to figures from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), onion consumption increases annually by more than 1.5%. Especially in the coronavirus year 2020, a lot more onions were consumed, but consumption also increased significantly in 2022. Although production has increased slightly faster than consumption over the past ten years, there is still a strong relationship between the two. In 2020 and 2022, for example, production increased by about 4.5% to 5%, which allowed consumption to increase by 4% to 4.5% in those years. Because onions have a limited shelf life, years with stagnant production also have immediate consequences for the amount of onions that are eaten. Population growth and increasing spending capacity form the basis for further increases in the consumption of food products. A growth expectation of 1.5% is considered a conservative scenario. If production increases at the same pace, around 136 million tonnes of onions will be harvested worldwide in ten years. However, if production continues to grow as quickly as it has in the past ten years, that amount could also rise to 155 million tonnes. In the Netherlands, there are significant fluctuations in production. Sharp increases (for example, in 2021, 2024, and 2025) are alternated with even stronger declines in dry years (such as 2018 and 2022). All in all, there is still a growth of about 5% per year over a long period. This year, the Netherlands produces 1.73 million tonnes of seed onions and over 300,000 tonnes of plant onions. Share of less than 2% As a result, our country has a share of less than 2% in global onion production. India is the largest producer with around 30 million tonnes, followed by China with an estimated 25 million tonnes of onions. These two countries far exceed the other countries in terms of production, as the next ones are Egypt and the United States with 3.3 to 3.8 million tonnes. Turkey and Bangladesh each have around 2.6 million tonnes of onions. The Netherlands is approaching the top 10 with around 2 million tonnes of seed and plant onions. As erratic as the production pattern is in the Netherlands, so too are the differences in the developments of consumption worldwide. There are countries where more and more onions are eaten, but also countries where fewer onions are consumed each year. Enthusiastic onion eaters The most enthusiastic onion eaters are not Africans but the population of Tajikistan. The nearly 11 million inhabitants of this Asian country eat an average of 57 kilograms of onions per person per year. The people in the African Niger (south of Algeria and Libya) eat slightly fewer onions per person at around 50 kilograms, but they are more numerous. This country counts about 28 million consumers. Number 3 belongs again to Asia; the 21 million Kazakhs each eat 43 kilograms per person. The Netherlands' largest onion customer, Senegal, ranks sixth on this list with an average of 31 kilograms per person. The 19 million Senegalese consume massive amounts of Dutch onions from September to January, accounting for a sale of about 180,000 tonnes of Dutch product. In the interim period (from late January to August), they eat from their own harvest. Côte d'Ivoire has sourced a comparable amount of onions from the Netherlands in recent years as Senegal. This amount is spread over a longer period. Moreover, Ivoirians are more numerous, about 33 million in total. Recent figures are lacking, but they are likely to eat more than the 5 kilograms that the FAO reported for the year 2017. Strongest consumption growth The strongest growth in consumption is seen in Tajikistan, Niger, and Kazakhstan, where people eat quickly 20 kilograms more onions per year than ten years ago. Egypt is a large producer at 3.8 million tonnes, but Egyptians eat a lot of it too. They now eat around 26 kilograms, while ten years ago it was about 10 kilograms less. A similar increase is seen in Bangladesh; from 9 to 18 or 19 kilograms. Growth is also occurring in India, from around 11.5 to 17.5 kilograms. This is less than the previously mentioned countries, but with one and a half billion inhabitants, this increase adds up. The 1.4 billion Chinese show a slight growth in consumption to 14 to 15 kilograms. Russia, Romania, Peru, Turkmenistan, Morocco, and Greece have significantly reduced their onion consumption. Germans and French Closer to home, Germans and French are eating more onions. In Germany, more and more onions are being grown, but they are also appearing on plates more often. Ten years ago, they ate about 7 kilograms, which has now risen to 10 kilograms. The French also eat 10 kilograms, and thus the difference from ten years ago is somewhat greater than in Germany. The Portuguese eat slightly more onions than the French and Germans, but onions have lost considerable ground there compared to years ago. Despite growth in many countries, there are also areas where they eat little or no onions. In Honduras, they barely eat a kilogram of onions per person per year, and in Norway, onions are far from a favorite with an annual consumption of 1.3 kilograms.