Yuanmou county in Yunnan is one of the most important onion production areas in China. The overall surface area devoted to onion plantation in Yuanmou is more than 2,667 hectares. More than 70% of the onions produced in Yuanmou are exported to Japan, Korea, and Russia. The harvest season takes place every year in March and April. The onion price greatly increased last year, but the export volume rapidly declined this year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, so the price suddenly dropped.
According to data from Yuanmou County Nengyu Vegetable Wholesale Market, the county exported 19.8 thousand tons of onions and the price is around 8-35 yuan [1.13-4.95 USD] per bag of 25 kg. The average price of yellow onions is around 10 yuan [1.41 USD] per bag. The average price of red onions is around 31.5 yuan [4.46 USD] per bag. The average prices of yellow and red onions declined by 67% and 16% in comparison with last year when the average price of yellow onions was 31 yuan [4.39 USD] per bag and the average price of red onions was 37.5 yuan [5.31 USD] per bag. The overall onion price was 29-40 yuan [4.10-5.66 USD] per bag in 2019.
Several buyers in the Yuanmou Wholesale Market came last month and purchased onions at last year's prices, but when the onions entered the market in large volumes, the price rapidly declined and even reached a new low. Onion traders are worried about this development. When various other markets across the globe gradually recover, the onion price is likely to warm up again.
Source: Jinri Toutiao