Onion market starts to turn more positive

The onion trade certainly is not running smoothly yet. The whole gloomy mood among sorters and exporters is fortunately easing somewhat. After a small buying wave from Morocco, it is Brazil that is on the market in the Netherlands this week. Quality is and remains a tricky point. That means there are large differences in prices both at the grower level and in the bag. Having an extra destination, as is the case this week with Brazil, is good for market sentiment. As a sorter, you do need suitable onions for that. It is mainly good white 50-70 mm and 60-80 mm that Brazil is asking for. Those are exactly the sizes that are already moving fairly well. In terms of volume, demand from Brazil is of course not turning the Dutch market upside down. To be fair, anything extra you can do is always a nice bonus. Some exporters are still somewhat cautious about Brazil. First of all because they ask for sizes in a quality that is not exactly abundant anyway. Another factor is that some have in the past paid some tuition fees in relation to claims from the South American country. It is certainly not said that such a thing will happen again, but it has made some exporters somewhat hesitant. Supply of Austrian onions declines Another bright spot that should not go unmentioned is that in Austria the price for sorted onions has risen a little for the second week. The supply of Austrian onions is steadily decreasing, while demand is increasing, writes the Landwirtschaftskammer Österreich. The quality of Austrian onions from storage is this season consistently satisfactory to very good. The fact that the price for Austrian onions is on the rise is mainly due to extra demand for export, according to the Landwirtschaftskammer. Compared with three weeks ago, the quotation has risen by €5 to €15 to €18 per 100 kilos sorted in crates. The lower quality onions are traded at lower prices, notes the Landwirtschaftskammer. Source: Landwirtschaftskammer Österreich In the Netherlands the quality range and therefore also the price range is and remains very broad. The small onions and finer medium onions are difficult to sell. If the color has also gone, if there is already some early sprouting in them or if they have been standing in front of the drying wall at the sorter for some time, they are offered at dump prices. Is that the market? No, most will say, but those are the prices that buyers are waving around. A good quality 50-70 mm is also a mid-sized onion, but can easily be €5 or more more expensive than a mediocre 40-60 mm or 45-65 mm. Large onions, but especially supers, are not very plentiful this season and that is also reflected in the bag price. The large sizes are making a small move upward.