ThePartnership no. 15

Marketing Where do

Marketing Where do onions travel to? The world’s largest onion exporters? They are India, China, Egypt and the Netherlands. But this is all relative; only ten percent of the total onion harvest worldwide is destined for export. In other words, nearly all onions do not cross any borders and are intended for local use. The Netherlands forms an exception, as 90 percent of their harvest is exported. But what about the total border crossings of more than 7,000,000 tonnes of onions? In some parts of the world the onion is considered a so-called ‘staple food’, a vegetable that is on the menu on a daily basis. Examples include North and Central African countries, India, countries in Eastern Europe and South America. And this can result in a shortage during certain parts of the year. For example, Brazil experiences a shortage from March through to May. “When these gaps occur, the price for local onions goes through the roof,” explains Portfolio Manager Lászlo Gajdos. “For these markets it is worth looking into the options of importing onions. Firstly, this is a product that can easily be transported over long distances due to its shelf life. Secondly, it is also very suitable for mechanical harvesting and this is already happening in large parts of the world. The onions from these export regions are generally favourable priced.” The most important flows Let’s have a look at the major exporters and the markets that they serve. We see that India exports a large part of its onion harvest – 80% are red onions – to Malaysia, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Philippines. A large share is also exported to the eastern part of the Middle East. Onions getting ready for transport in Brazil. China focuses mainly on Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines. In addition, a large share is also exported to East Africa. Gajdos: “But not to West Africa, because countries such as Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea and Ivory Coast depend on the Netherlands for the importation of onions.” Yet there are plenty of opportunities in this region to produce enough onions for their own market. According to Technical Manager Kingsley Ngwa Muyo, the shortages in West Africa can easily be solved by knowledge, improved technology and good hybrid varieties. “Good irrigation systems are necessary, as is the knowledge to get the best out of a good variety. In the past, we have seen what a difference good genetics can make at a local level in Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia. And now we are seeing this in Niger too. They already export 80% of their onion harvest within West Africa and there is an enormous potential for the other countries in this region to increase their self-sufficiency rate. However, they still need to take steps in terms of yield and logistics. This means investing in hybrid varieties, which is not yet common practice in West Africa. But this will happen in the longer term.” 16 | The Partnership The Partnership | 17