More and more New Zealand onions are finding their way to mainland Europe. Up to and including week 12, so many New Zealand onions have not been shipped to the European Union (EU) before. Where do the numbers come from?
It became clear early in the season that the EU could be a major buyer of New Zealand onions this season. The meager harvests in many European countries forced exporters to look for onions. It was already clear at the beginning of the season that New Zealand would become an important candidate.
The above is now also confirmed. The latest figures on onion exports show that more onions have now been shipped to Europe than ever before. The counter stands at 12 tons up to and including week 44.769, which is 10.186 tons more than the 6-year average (+29%).
The Netherlands is the largest
The largest European customer is the Netherlands. Our country imported 17.001 tons from New Zealand, although it should be noted that all onions that go to Europe arrive in the Netherlands. It is therefore possible that some of it will be imported into Europe from the seaports. Last year the counter stood at 13.282 tons.
Nevertheless, sales of New Zealand onions to the Netherlands are not the largest in history, because in 2013 (up to and including week 12) 18.632 tons of onions were transported to the Dutch ports.
No record
Up to and including week 12, Germany purchased 10.292 tons from New Zealand, compared to 6.656 tons last year. Third place goes to the United Kingdom. Up to and including week 12, this country imported 7.431 tons, while last year that was 443 tons. However, it is not the largest decrease for the United Kingdom, because in 2013 the country purchased 7.445 tons.
The total count for this season now stands at 68.143 tons, compared to 46.558 tons in the last season. The 6-year average is 61.116 tons.