Lack of sales opportunities squeezes onion margins

There is currently no money to be made from fine onions. It is the coarse onions that still bring in some money, but that is insufficient to make trading worthwhile. Every order is fiercely contested. Exporters and sorters say this season more often than ever: 'No one is willing to take a loss'.Sorters and exporters are generally negative about onion sales. The processing lines are running at a low pace, because there is no demand to run at full capacity. Only a few note that there is decent work. On average, according to companies, business is just ticking along.Still, that is not immediately visible in the export figures. Exports are somewhat too low to reduce stocks quickly, but the volume is certainly not bad. In recent weeks companies have exported around 20,000 tons. That is good compared with previous years. It is exceptional if exports in this period are above 20,000 tons.Every year it is a sobering moment when Senegal leaves the market. As soon as this West African country closes its borders to import onions in January, sorting activities in the Netherlands are halved. The volume then drops from around 40,000 tons to 20,000 tons per week. That remains difficult for sorters and exporters to adjust to.Especially in February and part of March it is difficult to sell many onions. This is particularly the case in years with a large European crop. The switch from Africa to Europe always takes time. This year that process seems to be taking longer than usual.Exports are not disappointing Taking that into account, exports are not disappointing at the moment. Since mid-January exports have averaged 20,000 tons per week, according to provisional figures from KCB and GroentenFruit Huis. That is slightly less than in 2022 and 2025, but clearly more than in 2023 and 2024. Exports are therefore holding up reasonably well.What is disappointing are the margins. That applies to sorters and exporters, but also to growers. At 10 to 14 cents per kilo in March from storage, it is meagre for producers. Especially because at the end of last year transactions were also made around 20 cents per kilo for delivery this spring.Those purchase prices cannot be passed on in sales. Certainly not now that fuel has become more expensive. Fine onions bring in 15 to 16 cents in the bag. Size 50-70 millimeters also does not work out at 17 to 19 cents. Margins have to come from coarse onions and supers. However, the volumes and margins of these are insufficient to make the total package profitable.Red onions Some sorters and exporters are therefore focusing more on red onions. There is a small fixed customer base for these. Coarse red onions bring in 24 to 26 cents in the bag and supers more than 40 cents per kilo. Finer sizes are also harder to place here, but the overall picture is more favourable than with yellow onions.That advantage does not apply directly to growers. Prices for red onions have fallen sharply, because sales are not sufficient to clear the large stocks. There is a surplus, partly due to an expansion of the acreage. Attempts are being made to stretch the season for red onions. However, with Egyptian onions on the way, time is limited. In their favour is that Dutch red onions are cheaper than Egyptian ones. Still, the broad expectation is that large volumes of red onions will be left over this year. In addition to free-market potatoes, an alternative destination must also be found for these onions.