The revival in the onion market seems to have a short life. A few weeks ago, there was still speculation about whether we would have enough good onions until the new season. Now the question is being asked again how many we will have left.
Onions can be unpredictable. In mid-April, sorters were figuratively fighting over the last good batches of onions because they were hardly being offered. Now, almost in June, it is being heard from various sources that the supply of good onions from the 2023 harvest in the sheds is still quite good. "A week or two ago, it would have been fine for me to buy some more, but we couldn't get them. Now we are gradually ending the season as planned, managing our stock towards the new harvest, and still receiving onions that we thought were almost gone."
What ultimately remains of onions this season is sparking lively discussions. Some progress is being made compared to last season. However, the gap is significant, and it does not seem realistic that we will completely catch up. Ideally, we would have needed an extra month to clear the remaining 70,000 tons.
Resigned mood
Sorters are becoming more critical of their purchases. Until a few weeks ago, there were packers who loaded the cheaper batches onto the growers and thought they could make more profit despite the extra work. That group has now thrown in the towel. They prefer a better and more expensive box of onions that they can confidently deliver to their regular customers, rather than dealing with the half-hearted work among the price fighters and hoping there won't be any claims later on. Of course, another factor is that you don't want to end up with onions that you can't do anything with at the very end.
The DCA listing Bales Price Onions has remained virtually unchanged compared to last week. Lowering the price does not result in extra work. In fact, according to some exporters, it could backfire because it signals that they will be cheaper next week. Whether the packers can remain united is still uncertain. It is still tempting to take some work away from competitors when things are quiet.
Read here the explanation from DCA Market Intelligence on the new listings.
