The onion harvest in North Rhine-Westphalia was completed this year with average yields, Hermann-Josef Jansen from the onion company of the same name based in Brüggen informs us. "Nevertheless, quality problems are already becoming apparent in many lots, as up to 30-40 percent of the onions could not be matured reasonably in the field. The difficult weather situation during growing in combination with the late sowing date will affect the quality in store later on. We are already noticing that there are more or less tubers with a weak internal quality in every lot."
Prices for good quality onions are around last year's level and this is expected to remain so until the end of the year. "The problem lots have to be cleared away first, and only then will there possibly be a price adjustment," suspects Jansen, who mainly grows onions for his own processing. "We have been able to harvest a relatively large amount of coarse goods (70+), which is partly due to the fact that we have specialised in this. In general, the calibre distribution across Europe is predominantly such that there are more small-sized onions this year."
In addition to yellow onions, the family business also produces and processes red onions. Here, too, the supply situation is roughly similar, says Jansen. "The supply is generally very limited and the 70+ variety in particular is in absolute short supply. In recent years, there have been several crop failures. In this difficult market environment, however, we were able to win several new customers for us, both within and outside the region."
At the end of June, they had to stock up on Spanish onions for a short time. Otherwise, they were able to process regional onions all year round.
According to Jansen, customer demand for onion products has hardly changed in recent years. "We are solidly positioned with our portfolio and serve our customers mainly with peeled onions, which they then process themselves." The selection of freshly cut vegetables, including onion products, is still quite manageable in German food retail. At the same time, competition in onion processing is steadily increasing. "There are some large companies involved in onion processing. But more and more smaller processors are also emerging in the individual regions that market part of their yields in processed form. This is also partly related to the sharp increase in the amount of cultivation in Germany," concludes the onion merchant.
Images: Zwiebel Jansen GmbH
For more information:
Hermann-Josef Jansen
Zwiebel Jansen GmbH
Haverslohe 31
D-41379 Brüggen
Tel: +49 (0)2163 50 67