Dutch onion export falls below 20,000 tons in week 8

The Dutch export activities in onions were quite modest in the third week of February. It appears not to be easy to keep the weekly export above 20,000 tons. According to preliminary figures from the KCB and the GroentenFruit Huis, a quantity of just over 17,000 tons crossed the border in week 8. This brings the interim total for exports to about 1,027,000 tons. The export thus retains its lead over last season. Compared to the same period last year, 88,000 tons or 9% more has been exported. However, there is a slight decline compared to the exports in the trading season of the 2021 harvest. Nevertheless, the current season remains the record holder in export volume, with the earliest crossing of the border of 1 million tons. The British were the largest consumers of Dutch onions in the third week of February, with a quantity of 4,276 tons. This makes week 8 a peak week in sales to Great Britain. It matches the peak export in week 2 of this year. To put it further into perspective; it is the third time this season that weekly exports to Great Britain exceed 4,000 tons. On average, the export to that country this season is around 3,000 tons per week. In week 8, the Netherlands also did good business with Guinea. Approximately 3,250 tons were shipped to this West African country that week. This time, the countries that purchase more than 1,000 tons of Dutch onions in a week are mentioned. In the previous week, there were still six countries. Israel (873 tons) and Spain (724 tons) were slightly more active in the market in week 8 than in previous weeks. Ivory Coast, Malaysia, and Gambia, however, hit the brakes at the start of Ramadan, which significantly reduced the weekly volume.