This Dutch onion season has begun on a very different price level to other years. "Onions were very expensive, definitely over the last two years; these prices are more normal again," says Gerard Vos of Vos Onions.
"This year, those prices also probably won't climb as high as in recent years. But that certainly doesn't have to be a negative. In recent years, the Netherlands regularly priced itself out of the market. I don't see that happening so quickly this year. Current demand is fairly broad, with many destinations participating, but the volumes are still lower than expected. Hopefully, those will increase. I think the onion sets' quality is good. There are always some inferior lots, but for the most part, the supply looks good," Gerard explains.
Also, this year, Vos Onions has taken up packaging red onions again. "We used to process those in the spring. We didn't do that for several years, mainly due to lack of space. But in 2022, we put up a new building and added new drying walls this year, so we can do that again. At present, at least, red onions are priced above yellow ones." Gerard has a clear vision of his chain position. "We buy almost everything through brokers and leave the exporting to exporters. We've never wanted to do that. Just let us process the onions," he says.
The mentioned new building means the Dutch packer has expanded its sorting and packaging facility by 2,000 m2, and its location now covers 3,500 m2 of floor space. The plant now houses five Flikweert graders. "We used to be skeptical of optical graders, but we've had to change our minds. We were the first onion company to choose this type of grader. It was said it would never work, but it does. Perfectly."
Other onion packers have since followed Vos' example. "That's a good thing," he explains. "The more data becomes available, the better the machine becomes. I'm not saying that in a few years, we'll have no one on the belt at all, but the speed of this development has surprised me. Still, it's no hospital. The batch must be good because what's unhealthy won't improve." What is the company betting on this year? "On taking it easy. We've done our investing and have no more wishes," Gerard concludes, laughing.
Gerard Vos
Vos Onions
Bagijnhof 66
4264 AZ Veen
Tel: +31 41 669 11 97
[email protected]