"Currently, the onion season is fizzling out," says sales manager René Tiggelman of Van Langevelde Trading Company from Kruiningen. "Sales are still plodding along, but things are certainly not lively. France is our biggest destination at the moment. There's still the occasional truck going to Germany, and we've also sold some to Africa this week, but many other countries have already dropped off."
"The prices for medium-sized sorting vary greatly, depending on the quality, but onions suitable for small packaging are at a level around 26-27 cents. The 60-80 sorting for wholesale markets is just above that," René continues. "Red onions are not even available for purchase at packers anymore. This week, I sent the first Egyptian red onions to my French clients."
"All in all, we have to endure for another month, as I don't see a revival coming. For the new season, I mainly hope for slightly lower prices, because for destinations like the Far East, we have missed the boat for the second year in a row, and that's quite bitter for us as an exporter."
"We've priced ourselves out of the market a bit. As a result, more and more countries are discovering China as a supplier. This year, plenty of Chinese onions went to Malaysia, but to Africa as well. Suddenly, the price of Chinese onions becomes important to us, something we never had to worry about in Africa before," says the sales manager. "The potato export is also not very lively. We still export them, especially to France, but less than other years due to more competition and lesser quality."
For more information:
René Tiggelman
Van Langevelde Trading Company
Stationsweg 4d
4416 PJ Kruiningen
Tel: 0113-382600
[email protected]
www.javala.nl