"Chinese onion export prices highest in years"

“The vegetable market in China is marked by sharply fluctuating prices, which is the same for the onion market. Currently export onion prices hover around $470 per ton, which is higher than in previous years. Last year onion prices hovered around $440 per ton,” according to Li Chun Mei, the export manager of An Qiu Min Feng Food, a producer and exporter of ginger and garlic in Shandong province. 

“I expect prices to go up even more later in the season. Speculation with vegetable prices is common in China and it can happen that buyers buy up large quantities to keep prices artificially high”.

An Qiu Min Feng Food farms onions in the Shandong province. The onions are stored in 16 cool storage spaces and are all for the export to Japan. Before export the onions are pealed, cleaned and hermetically sealed. Every week the company exports around 12 containers.

“The city of Anqiu is one of the centres of ginger production in China. Ginger prices will rise from now on, until the new ginger comes on the market at the beginning of 2016. Ginger from Anqiu is both exported and sold on the domestic Chinese market. Prices can vary on both markets. Last season prices in China have been higher than in some of our export markets, including Europe. I think this trend will continue and I expect to sell more on the domestic market in the future,” says Li Chun Mei. 

Chinese ginger is planted in April and harvested in October. After harvesting, the ginger is laid to rest for one month, after which it is washed and dried with electric vents. An Qiu Min Feng Food has recently refurbished 16 professional cool warehouses to dry and store the ginger. The company has also invested in new sprinkler installations to irrigate the fields. The company has focussed sales on the European market. For this they opened an office and brand in Belgium in 2014 under the name KX Food. 

“The 2015 ginger harvest is expected to be good. There has been plenty of rain in summer, which is beneficial for the crop. We maintain long-lasting business relationships with buyers in Europe. Many producers, including us, prefer not to trade via Alibaba. We prefer direct contact and attend international trade shows, such as Fruit Logisitca in Berlin, to find new clients”.