Onion exports in week 13 exceed 22,000 tons

In the last full week of March, Dutch exporters shipped 22,092 tons of onions across the border. This is evident from provisional figures from the KCB and GroentenFruit Huis. Week 13 turns out quite well for the Dutch onion sector. An export of more than 22,000 tons is very welcome to keep exports at a good level. Many exporters assume that with a weekly export of around 20,000 tons, the onion stock this season will be cleared in a good way. The mood in the onion market is under pressure due to a large supply of lower quality and small onions. Buyers are not currently looking for small onions; they mainly want large onions. Batches of lower quality are also weighing on the market, because these onions need to be consumed quickly and a long journey is no longer possible for these products. Britons buy many onions Great Britain remains an important buyer of Dutch onions. In week 13, the Britons took almost 4,400 tons. That is the largest volume they have taken in a week this season. For nine weeks in a row, exports to Great Britain have been greater than 3,000 tons. This means exports to this destination are running at a high level. Total exports to Great Britain have already risen to 124,000 tons. This amount is 37,000 tons, or 43%, higher than a year ago. Sales to Spain are also continuing well with a weekly volume of around 2,100 tons. Spain is currently the second largest customer for the Netherlands. Guinea (1,950 tons) and Ivory Coast (1,435 tons) continue to participate well as major buyers. Morocco provides extra sales Morocco temporarily dropped out last week as a customer at the Dutch onion counter, but in week 13 this North African country still accounted for the purchase of almost 1,500 tons. Normally, Morocco is not active on the market for imports from the Netherlands, but there is now a local shortage of onions. The expectation is that onions will still go to Morocco in the coming weeks. Exports in the preceding weeks have somewhat flooded the market in Morocco, exporters explain.