Trade is a matter of trust, it is said. When you see what is happening on the onion market, growers, commissioners, sorters and end customers must have blind faith in each other.
Growers readily ask €50 for onion sets and the trade, albeit reluctantly, simply goes along with this. That in itself can also be explained. The soil is hard and clearing is not easy where irrigation is not possible. The rain that is in the weather reports for next week may solve that problem, but you cannot load again if it rains. No matter how you look at it, a bulk of onions cannot be expected in the short term. The demand for sorted product may be somewhat lower compared to other years, but the supply remains lower, so the market remains tight. €40 for seed onions grown from the field shows more courage. This may not be done in very large numbers, but it does indicate that it is not only growers who are interested in onions. After all, a buyer is also needed and he in turn also wants to earn something from it.
Speculating on yield
What certainly helps the good mood on the onion market is the early demand from Africa, although as mentioned, it does not involve very large volumes. In addition, the expected returns continue to cause commotion. The early varieties of onion onions were generally not disappointing, but according to insiders the later varieties such as a Sturon are somewhat disappointing, although the harvest has of course yet to start. The kilos of seed onions have a greater influence on price formation. And it just depends on who you ask. Some people think that everything is going well, while others only see lions and bears on the road. Meaningless, but perhaps closest to the truth: we have a late start to the growing season and we still have at least a month of growth to go that will determine yield. A single plot of land can be depreciated, but that is certainly not the case on a large scale.
Due to the high grower prices, various sorters are trying something out with onions from Poland. Onion onions were available in good quantities there, transport is somewhat affordable again compared to the corona period and good contacts still exist. There is no question of a Polish broom wagon - to speak in cycling terms for the last weekend of the Tour - like last season. Whether this remains the case remains to be seen. You also hear very different opinions in Poland about the status of the main crop of seed onions. Just like in the Netherlands, it can actually go either way.
De DCA quotation Bale price of Onions going up a bit this week. On average, all grades combined, the bale price is around €62 to €63 per 100 kilos. The differences between triplets and supers, and everything in between, are limited.