The harvest of seed onions in Poland is in full swing, when the weather conditions permit. Despite a disappointing onion harvest, the market does not react to this in a significant way. This has everything to do with the import of Dutch onions, which are offered in abundance.
The onion area has increased this year in Poland, as in many other European countries. A smaller harvest and high market prices prompted growers to do so. According to government data, 25.100 hectares of onions were sown and planted this year. That is an increase of 3.650 hectares, or 17%. In 2022, the onion area was still 20.000 hectares.
The accuracy of these figures is still disputed. Insiders believe that the final area may have turned out to be somewhat smaller than previously thought. It is clear that relatively many winter onions have been sown and planted.
Quality
After an early and smooth start with high temperatures, which allowed the onions to develop well, an erratic growing season followed. That did the onion crops little good. Persistent drought, alternating with heavy rainfall, ensured that the yields and quality are very variable this season.
This has caused the onion market to gain an upward sentiment when the harvest started. From mid-August this movement has been somewhat tempered. According to insiders this is mainly due to the import of onions from the Netherlands. This partly concerns industrial onions, which are processed in Poland, but big bags with high-quality product have also found their way to the country.
Dutch export
Most onions that go to Poland from the Netherlands are not included in the KCB figures. Up to and including week 34, the export grower is now at 604 tonnes, compared to 210 tonnes a year earlier. In recent weeks, the weekly volume has increased slightly, to 166 tonnes, but that does fluctuate a bit.
Polish sorted and bagged onions are currently being paid between €23 and €30 per 100 kilos. That is 14% less than the multi-year average and 36% less than the price of a year ago. Due to quality problems and the import of cheap onions, the market will probably remain around this level for the coming period.