The onion harvest started in January at Premium Fresh in Tasmania. "February was a bit slow due to the wet spring we had had and it was difficult to get the quantity we would expect," explains Jim Ertler, from Premium Fresh.
"The quality is good; we are just running 2-3 weeks late with the harvest. We struggled a bit with sizing early on but the sizing is now good. The later harvest means we will have to ship our volumes in a smaller window putting a bit of pressure on production for export. The mainland has had more heat than normal so we will have to see how that affects quality."
Jim said that overall, the markets are looking OK.
"Domestically the market is strong for red onions this year, that will probably change next year if growers plant more. There is still quite a bit of onions around in Europe, but the quality in some places is a bit suspect, we will have to wait and see how this progresses. New Zealand also have good volumes available."
"We are hopeful that the Suez Canal will be open by the time we ship, but we are not counting on it. We have planned to go the alternative route but if it opens then that will be a bonus."
Shipping for export starts the first week of March and runs through to April.
For more information:
Jim Ertler
Premium Fresh Tasmania
Tel: +61 3649 888 88
Email: jim.ertler@premiumfresh.com.au
www.premiumfresh.com.au