The mood on the onion market remains cautiously optimistic. Some growers and sorters seemed to think in December that no more onions would be sold after the new year. That will work out. This week too, the demand for onions is good and the bale price is holding up. But that says nothing about the further price trend this month.
The first half of the onion season is traditionally dominated by Africa. That demand does not immediately drop after New Year's Eve, but we do know that the border of Senegal will close. Whether that happens a week earlier or later is quite decisive for the mood on the Dutch onion market. The fact that Christmas and New Year's Day fall on weekdays may be positive for the exporters. Around this time, quays are sometimes filled up in anticipation of a border closure. The exporters have had less of that chance now. It may be wishful thinking, but because fewer onions have now been put in stock, there is more room to ship onions to Africa a little later this month, according to some insiders.
If the border remains open until the end of January, there could well be a buying round on the Dutch growers. Sorters traditionally prefer not to keep too large working stocks for January. If the demand from abroad remains there, they will have to go to the farmer again.
Europe informs
Although it is mainly Africa that the Dutch are now focusing on, some sorters also point out that there is interest in Dutch onions within Europe. Polish peelers easily absorb the lesser batches. The disadvantage is that they are sharp on the price. Beautiful coarse white onions find their way to Southern Europe. However, they are not the large volumes that we are used to from African buyers. Overcapacity at sorters in the second half of the season could still put a spanner in the works in that respect.
The DCA bale price for onions remains largely the same this week. The triplets are the most striking. Some sorters have too many and offer very sharply, while others keep the price on because they have too few.
Read here is the explanation from DCA Market Intelligence on the new quotations.