Interview Gijsbrecht Gunter
'Fine sorting keeps the onion sector busy'
Just like the potatoes, the onions are also considerably smaller this year. It presents the sector with major challenges and that is the talk of the day. Gijsbrecht Gunter, chairman of the Holland Onion Association, also notices this.
How significant is the finer sorting this season for onion buyers?
"There is a lot of talk about it. Compared to potatoes, however, the situation is slightly different. The sorters do not process the onions into an end product, such as French fries. In the first half of the season, Africa is mainly on the market, but also the Far East. is then active and there goes a lot finer sorts away. In the second half, after the new year, the large onions are only really used. For example, Brazil and the United Kingdom (UK) are major buyers of large onions."
Has it become a fact that the onions are much nicer this year?
"In a general sense, the sorting is very fine. That is the case throughout onion-growing Europe, but there are regional differences. In Groningen and Drenthe you can find coarse plots, and you also hear about it from Flevoland. southwest of the country it's downright dramatic. You come across plots of 15 tons per hectare, with only marbles underneath. That's a real concern. You can therefore see that the trade is spreading its cultivation relationships more across the various cultivation areas in the Netherlands and beyond. This should limit risks."
Last season the triplets were an issue. Is the problem much bigger now?
"I have not yet done the calculation. The overall yield per hectare is considerably lower, which also affects the percentage of fine onions. It seems that the yield is declining by tens of percentages. It would be interesting to calculate how many triplets, medium and large onions there are in absolute terms, especially now that the yields are much lower. You can compare that with last season, in order to get an idea of the net kilograms of each sort for export. coarse onions are rock solid."
How do customers deal with the finer sizing?
"In previous seasons, you saw that a strategy was adopted in storage: store coarse onions and put them in the freezer for later in the season. This has been used successfully before with red onions, to coarse and medium to separate. The point is that you must have coarse onions in the batch. Also, the supply of substance at the beginning of the season must be very large. Some farmers who have sown more thinly, for coarse onions, are now likely to have less yield. A pity, because responding to specific sales opportunities is actually very good."
The onion sector has its own language with 'triplets' and 'supers'. How about that?
"If we talk about 'triplets', we are talking about the size 35 to 50 millimeters. And then you get all kinds of sizes in the middle class: 40 to 60 millimeters, 45 to 65 millimeters, 50 to 60 millimeters or 50 to 70 millimeters. Grove onions are mainly graded 60 to 80 millimeters.For specific retail destinations, 60 to 70 millimeters or 70 to 80 millimeters are also graded. Above that we speak of 'supers' or 'bonken', where 70 to 105 millimeters is common. that the sorting responds to the sales opportunities. Instead of 50 to 70 millimeters, it is checked, in consultation with the customer, whether 50 to 60 millimeters can be deducted."
Optimists say fine onions are an advantage for Africa. Are they traded individually?
"It is true that onions in Africa are sold per piece and bought per kilo, which has the advantage that there are many onions in 1 kilo. You also see an increase in demand for medium and large onions there. The worldwide trend is from triplets to medium and from medium to coarse. That number also includes the profit of the African and you cannot endlessly translate that into the volume. Coarse onions are mainly bought because of the convenience. For 1 pan of onion soup you would rather peel 10 large than 20 small ones. Dry years often deliver good quality, despite the current problems with trips For the time being, I see a nice product coming over the belt, which has grown very compact. We can be proud of that and advertise this season."
What about exports to Africa? Are there new destinations we can count on?
"It is too early to make firm statements, but something is heading towards Africa. The price is quite high, so the question is how buyers will act. That will probably lead to restraint. New countries do not come directly. In recent years we have seen that Indonesia and Panama have grown considerably in volume. On an individual level, more exporters are active on the African East Coast. Logistically, that is more difficult, but the potential is enormous."
"Countries such as Ethiopia and Tanzania are experiencing population growth and economic development. They can improve ports and infrastructure. With a consumption of 15 to 20 kilos of onions per person per year, domestic cultivation cannot keep up. The Netherlands must remain a reliable trading partner and respect the native farmer. Look at global consumption, then the demand will increase due to population growth. Those people all like to eat out on an outing."
Niels van der Boom
© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.