Demand for large onions remains strong, while medium-sized onions are struggling to sell and putting pressure on prices. Buyers are adjusting strategies to find supply. Read more about price differences in the onion trade.
Buyers are becoming increasingly creative in securing the onions they want. Everyone is eyeing the nice, large onions. After all, these sell well, while sorters are left with the medium-sized ones. That is why buyers are pulling out all the stops to get their hands on those beautiful, large onions. Growers with a beautiful, large product, however, are taking a wait-and-see approach. They are hoping for better prices later in the season.
To better respond to the current market situation, buyers are offering prices based on size classifications. For example, nothing is paid for small onions, and 14 cents or more per kilo for large onions. Deals have also been struck for 10 cents per kilo for onions under 50 millimeters and 13 cents per kilo for onions larger than 50 millimeters.
Sorters currently prefer to focus on 60 millimeters and up. Simply because there is demand for this in this market. However, growers who have nice, large onions stored in their barns are not yet willing to part with them based on current prices. Buyers are therefore looking for batches that come close to that.
It is quite a struggle to gather those onions. Often, it involves small volumes of just a few truckloads. "I feel just like a greengrocer," responds a trader. "It’s all little bits that I’m scraping together."
As spring approaches, more and more batches containing sprouts are entering the market. This is often accompanied by more bald onions. Poland does purchase these onions, but pays no more than 4 or 5 cents per kilo. Growers are not enthusiastic about such a price. At the same time, transport costs are rising. Due to higher diesel prices, these are easily 2 cents per kilo higher.
With red, size is even more decisive.
With red onions, the sales problem for medium-sized onions is even greater than with yellow. Therefore, for red onions, there is an even stronger focus on purchase prices per size. Buyers often apply a price only for sizes 50 millimeters and up.
Price differences widen further in the red; for instance, lots are traded for 10 cents at the lower end, while deals are also being done for 16 to 18 cents if papers are included with the lot. At the Emmeloord exchange, however, the quotation stabilizes at 10 to 13 cents per kilo.