The expected onion crop in Europe will be 6,3 million tons, more than 13 percent less than last year, reports portal Nieuweoogst.nl. The limited offer provides a fixed onion market at the start of the season with prices this week of 30 euros per 100 kg.
In my analysis Dutch Bow Association (HOA) indicates a smaller onion crop in the European Union and the United Kingdom. These organizations are based on the forecasts of the German market agency AMI. The smaller crop is partly the result of a 9 percent reduction in European onion acreage to around 104 ha.
Apart from the Netherlands, Spain, Germany and Poland are the largest onion producers in Europe. Of these four countries, only Poland received slightly more onions than in 2021. In almost all European growing regions, yields per hectare are lower than multi-year averages due to moderate growing conditions.
Outside Europe, it is noticeable that AMI also expects New Zealand to have fewer onions available for export, particularly to Europe. The area of onion cultivation there this season is the lowest in eight years. In contrast, India's export volume appears to be higher than last year. In addition, there is currently less demand for European bows from South America. Brazil now mainly buys onions from Argentina and Chile.
For the Netherlands, HOA has estimated that about 1,05 million tons of onions will be available for export this year. This is despite the fact that in the 2021-2022 season, a record amount was sold abroad - more than 1,3 million tons. About half of the volume available for this season has already been delivered up to and including week 45. During the remaining weeks of this season's exports, an average of about 14 tons per week remains.
Average prices for medium-sized onions are 26,8 euros per 100 kg. This is the estimated price for onions delivered dry from storage. Last year, up to and including the 45th week, the average price of this proposal was 11,3 euros per 100 kilograms.