Traveling with an old timetable

Anyone who travels these days should prepare well. Of course it matters which journey it is about; a business trip requires different preparation than a day out with the family.

Those who travel by public transport can now plan their journey via 9292. Previously there was a paper timetable, which was adjusted annually. If you were standing at the bus stop based on the old timetable, then you were sometimes literally and figuratively checked.

Situation on the onion market
It reminded me of the situation on the onion market. We live in 2018, but it sometimes feels like summer 1976. In that year 11.290 hectares of seed onions, 1.207 hectares of first-year onion sets and 908 hectares of second-year onion sets were grown in the Netherlands. The drought caused mood and price to move.

The onions were traded on the Emmeloord stock exchange in August 1976 for 45 guilders per 100 kilos (€ 20,50). The highest quotation (11 November 1976) was 80 guilders per 100 kilos (€36,30) and the lowest quotation (24 March 1977) was 20 guilders per 100 kilos (€9,10). The outcome was uphill, so that the quotation eventually came to 60 guilders per 100 kilos (€ 27,25).

Harvest of 1976
The magic of the 1976 harvest is fully alive. Apart from the precipitation deficit, there is little that corresponds to the year. The acreage, sorting capacity and sales (to name but a few) have changed drastically. Leaning on 1976 will not bring much, because we will have to make do with the onions that were grown in 2018.

It will be quite a job to satisfy every buyer, keep the staff at work, give the growers the feeling of a fair price, keep the quality as optimal as possible and you can probably list (many) more reasons .

The new 1976?
Harvest year 2018 will be the new 1976, but with its own skills. It is not automatic that there will also be a 1977. In that year, the acreage for seed onions increased by 16% to 13.070 hectares, the acreage for onion sets increased by 20% to 2.550 hectares and prices remained on average below 5 guilders per 100 kilos (€2,27).

Growing onions in 2019 requires an 'up-to-date timetable' (variety, plot, irrigation and contract), whereby the results in yield (kilo and price) can vary considerably. Good preparation prevents you from standing at the bus stop and the bus not showing up.

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