It is difficult to grasp the onion market this week. Confidence in the onion market varies considerably from grower to grower and from sorter to sorter. Almost no one is really convinced that the market will go up or down. We can see that flat mood in the DCA Bale price this week.
One grower has to see if the onions will turn out well and wants to do business before Christmas at all costs, while the next says for this money I'll risk it that they will yield more in the spring. A similar contrast exists among sorters. One is bursting with work and barely knows how to turn everything around, while the other is busy but no more than that. The common denominator that we can discover is that they prefer not to trade too much and too far ahead.
Tack
The group of growers who are now getting a bit nervous generally consists of farmers who stuck to their guns at €18 three or four weeks ago. Now they are offering the same onions for, say, €15 and the sorter does not want them. Packers who are a bit quieter are not on the market because they do not have the extra sales. Processors who are fully booked and who would like to buy some more if the price fits, do not do so because they have doubts about the quality. After all, a grower will have a reason to suddenly want to lower the price now. "If you have to make tons to meet the orders, you should not start struggling with inferior onions that make you work slower. Onions that are a little cheaper ultimately cost money", according to a sorter.
That not every sorter had the same amount of work this week is also noticeable in the bale price. After weeks with a limited increase or stable market, the middles and triplets are now taking a step back. For the frequently traded size 50-70, €26 was very common last week. This week, €25,50 is doing well. That also says something. After a few seasons where it was a matter of pennies and dimes, it now sometimes depends on half a cent.
Read here is the explanation from DCA Market Intelligence on the new quotations.