It's the high temperatures or it's down to speculators, either way the current onion market does not move great volumes. On the contrary, volumes are quite low. An operator explained to us, “Not many onions are sold and the price is high. Anyway, some colleagues of mine are keeping the product in the storage, hoping for higher values. I think this is just wrong”.
If the product is stored for a prolonged time, the operator is afraid that the storage cells will be still full by March, thus resulting in endurance issues. Therefore, importers and the Gdo could be tempted to buy from Australia. “It would not be the first time. I know that big chains like Coop, Conad or Esselunga focus on the Italian product, fortunately. However, several GD little players will also start looking somewhere else, that is in foreign countries.
The operator pointed out, “Something completely novel is going on. That is, Spanish companies are offering us their white onion. I think this says a lot: they are starting to focus on Italy as well. It would be better if we start marketing our product as the best”.