All in all, the onion trade isn't bad at all this week. Not all processors are open, and that's noticeable at those that are. Growers with good onions continue to exude confidence. Partly because of this, the market seems to have bottomed out for the time being.
No real volumes are being processed during this short work week before Christmas. Several sorting facilities are completely closed this week. Businesses that are continuing to operate are operating with reduced staffing levels. Combine that with some last-minute orders that still need to be processed quickly, and it quickly feels quite busy.
Growers with good, large onions in storage aren't impressed by all the talk about the large onion harvest in the Netherlands. "You can get plenty of onions for €13 or €14, but those aren't exactly the ones you want. Nice, large onions quickly cost €15 or €16, and some growers are asking for even more," says an insider.
Buying round coming up?
If exports improve in the first weeks of January, a buying spree could very well occur. Several sorters have been quick to manage their inventory, as they didn't want to be left with expensive onions in January. This couldn't quite work out as planned, for example, if another shipment arrives in the second week of January, which is being speculated about by various insiders.
Although exports are doing quite well and there's less competition, efforts to raise the bale price are proving difficult, if not impossible. This would be essential for the sorter's margin. At the current market price, sorters say it's just possible, but almost everyone still has some more expensive onions purchased earlier. The DCA bale price for onions remains largely unchanged this week.