The Dutch onion market has shown a downward trend in recent weeks, impacting exports. "The mood is lacking, and no markets are taking large volumes. Since the market's declining, orders are only placed as necessary," says Maarten van Damme of Dacomex.
"It's a peculiar situation. Last season's high expectations carried over into this year, pushing prices up too early. However, those high prices were based more on speculation than actual market demand. This season's situation is reversed. Since the start of winter, onion shipments have structurally declined. We expected this price drop but didn't know when it would happen."
"The current bag price for medium-sized onions is around 26 euro cents. Smaller sizes and lower quality are below that, and larger onions are above. Demand must now primarily come from Europe, but especially Eastern Europe is delaying. They have alternatives," Maarten explains. "We need higher export figures - above 20,000 tons per week - to clear everything for the new season. We're far from that now. Red onion grower prices have also started dropping."
"Collectively, we have more onions than initially thought. So, the harvest was good. That was lower in the southwest of the Netherlands, with some quality issues. But nice batches are still coming from the north. There are more instances of sprouting now, though. Industrial onion prices have also dropped because the lower quality is now pressing on the market," Maarten concludes.
For more information:
Maarten van Damme
Dacomex
Tel.: +31 (0) 166 662 550
maarten@dacomex.nl
www.dacomex.nl