'More than half have stopped growing onions in the region'

The acreage of seed onions in Zeeland has been steadily declining for years due to the various challenges that Zeeland growers have to contend with. Even with the relatively higher market prices of recent seasons, cultivation is no longer always profitable. Drip irrigation offers a future for onion cultivation in Zeeland, but also increases cultivation costs. Jacky Dieleman, participant of the Boerenbusiness Crop tour, will keep onion cultivation going without drip irrigation for the time being. Thanks to a freshwater source under his arable farm.

The 2024 growing season will follow Boerenbusiness Dutch Crop tour another ten plots with yellow onions. From sowing to harvest, the participating arable farmers take us through the cultivation and the decisions they make during the growing season. With this series of interviews we get to know the grower and the company, his vision on cultivation and certain strategies. In the second interview of the onion crop tour it is Jacky Dieleman, grower in Philippine (Zeeland).

Compared to a 'normal' year, very little has happened this season, says Jacky Dieleman. No onions have been sown on their farm yet. The onion sets, for which it is about time, are also not yet in the ground. While normally and traditionally they are one of the earliest in the Netherlands to sow onions. The Zeeland-Flemish region where Dieleman's company in Philippine is located has extensive experience in growing onions. For example, Dieleman has also started sowing in February. Not this season. Last week, before the showers came on land again in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen, some liquid manure was finally spread. That's it. "We spread some manure, but if you saw how it went, it was actually too wet to do that. But you have to do something."

Some onions have been sown in the region, but not many. Dieleman indicates that they do not want to be in a hurry with the sowing and prefer to wait for more favorable conditions. "Last year we saw how not to sow onions with all that rain. We wanted to start recently, but it was still very wet and the weather forecast indicated many millimeters in the near future. I would rather we doing well under the right conditions rather than slogging and being in a hurry. Sowing on time sounds nice, but does not always give you an increased yield under poor conditions. The ground is also still cold at the moment."

Good experience with primed seed
As for the varieties, there is a different name on the box of onion seeds in the shed this season. Dieleman says that the varieties he has chosen will make their debut on the arable farm this year. "We are sowing the Hybound and Centro varieties this season. We choose these varieties because they are suitable for storage and do well on our lighter soil. In addition, it must be a variety that is slightly earlier than a Dormo or Donna. this out." With these new varieties, Dieleman hopes to bring in some extra quality for the storage season compared to the previous varieties he had.

The onion seed has also been primed again this year, due to the good experiences with primed compared to regular seed. "What struck me about primed onion seed, and that is what the seed is known for, is that it really grew faster in the beginning with a more regular emergence. Once halfway through the growing season we quickly added about 80.000 plants per hectare more the primed variety. In terms of kilos at harvest, they were not far apart in the end, but with the primed variety there were just a few more in the swath. However, primed was slightly better in terms of size sorting, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. to be."

Cultivation is no longer profitable with 15 tons
The hectares of seed onions on the company vary depending on the size of the plot, but the cultivation is sustainable. This is not self-evident in the region where the arable farm is located. Dry, warm summers plague onion cultivation, while many growers do not have access to freshwater for irrigation. In addition, fusarium has an increasing impact on quality. According to Statistics Netherlands, in the province of Zeeland, seed onion cultivation has decreased from 2017 hectares since 6.060 to 3.380 hectares in 2022. That is a decrease of 44% in just five years. In 2023, the area in the province decreased further, although these figures are not yet known.

Dieleman confirms that colleagues have completed the cultivation. In his region, the decline in cultivation may be somewhat greater. "You see that many growers are stopping in this area. I think that here in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen there are about 40% of the onion growers left if you compare it with six years ago. This is purely due to the warmer and dry summers, the can irrigate and also the thrips damage that follows. As a result, you simply miss your kilos." Even with the prices of previous seasons, yellow onion cultivation is often not profitable. "The cultivation in itself is quite expensive and costs have risen in recent years. With 15 tons of onions per hectare, it costs you money, even if the price is 30 cents per kilo."

The reason they continue with cultivation is due to the well they have struck. "We are fortunate that our company is located on land that has a freshwater bubble underneath it. This freshwater source allows us to irrigate our crops. For the time being, freshwater is still coming out of it, but it is only a small bubble so it could end quickly. This is the reason for us that we still grow onions on the farm. If we don't have them, I'm afraid the cultivation will stop for us."

Drip irrigation stands out
In order to keep onion cultivation profitable, Dieleman sees that colleagues in his area have switched to the use of drip irrigation. The technique has benefited from the dry periods in recent years and has therefore been able to distinguish itself with significantly higher yields. He sees that in addition to good yields, his colleagues also harvested good quality onions last season. Drip irrigation is not yet used on our own farm. This is mainly due to irrigation from the established source: these costs are a lot lower than drip irrigation. Dieleman indicates that this higher cost item does pose an additional risk. "In a year with sales prices like 2023, you can easily recoup those extra costs. But if you do it at sales prices of 10 cents per kilo, you have to wonder whether it is possible."

The sales season starts with the purchase of seed
Dieleman has no fixed sales strategy for seed onions. It depends on the quality in storage, the market and the feeling about it. It is true that with an average hectare of yield there is not enough space on the company to store everything. In total, Dieleman has a storage capacity of approximately 250 tons. Anything that doesn't fit is thrown away. "The sales season actually starts from the moment you buy the seed. From then on, there are times when you can already sell the onions. For example, we listen to what can be made in advance sales, but like this year we did not find the conditions really interesting. We don't have a specific strategy. What is certain is that the onions should actually be gone by March 1. We mainly work on lighter soil and therefore the storage quality is somewhat less than on heavier soil. In addition, the roof is not insulated and when the temperature starts to rise outside, you get condensation and then they just have to go."

Trips and dry summers go hand in hand
The weather extremes have made cultivation quite challenging in recent years, but Dieleman also sees a lot of challenge in the shrinking resource package in the coming years. What should not be forgotten is the thrips pressure. "We have seen a lot of damage from the thrips here in recent years. Plots that turn completely white/gray from the thrips and perish. And it is precisely in the dry and warmer periods that you get a lot of damage. The drier it gets, the more damage the creature causes to the crop. In a well-growing crop you do not cause much damage, but just when the crop starts to wither, it is susceptible to thrips and it costs you kilos."

The Dieleman family's arable farm in Philippine does not yet have any immediate concrete plans for investments for the future. "The plan is to adjust the construction plan in such a way that we reduce or regulate the nematode pressure somewhat. That is a challenge. In addition, it is also a bit uncertain with the availability of fresh water. On the one hand, I also want to increase the area of ​​potatoes I'm going to increase things a bit. But after a year like this with high seed potato prices, the costs are also a lot higher and I want to grow freely. I therefore think: if we continue as we are now, we will do well."

Jesse Torringa

Jesse is an editor at Boerenbusiness and focuses in particular on the arable farming sector, including grain and onions. He also closely follows the fertilizer market. In addition, Jesse works on an arable farm in Groningen with seed potatoes as the main branch.

j.torringa@boerenbusiness. Nl

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