According to the CEO of KeyPeru, Miguel Ognio Gomez, Peru plans to export 109,200 tons (4,200 containers of 26 tons each) of sweet onions in the August 2017 / January 2018 campaign, i.e. 5% more than the 104 thousand tons (4,000 containers) that it dispatched in the previous campaign.
Ognio Gomez also stated that 85% to 90% of total exports of this product would be sent to the United States, while the remaining would be shipped to Europe and Latin America.
According to him, the volume to be exported (109,200 tons) represents 98% of the national production of sweet onion. The remaining 2% is destined to the local market. "Unfortunately a lot of sweet onion is discarded, as it doesn't meet the aesthetic requirements for export and nobody buys it."
He also stated that KeyPeru would dispatch 900 to 950 of the 4,200 containers of sweet onion that Peru will export in the current campaign.
Low prices due to disorganized dispatches
Miguel Ognio also stated that sweet onion prices in the present campaign were not as good as expected because of exporters hadn't planned shipments properly.
"Many exporters think that the sweet onion market is large and they export high volumes in a few weeks, as if it were a commodity (like pink or spicy onion) and it is not. Sweet onion is a delicacy and it is sent to a niche market, that is the only way that it can be sustainable," he said.
Source: agraria.pe