Featured image: Red storage onions in bins, photo by OnionBusiness.com
MARKET
Washington/Idaho-E. Oregon:
Jason Pearson with Eagle Eye Produce in Nyssa, OR, told us on Oct. 12 that demand is off this week. “Demand has dipped this week,” he said. “Of the demand we do have, buyers are looking for reds and yellows. We do have good availability. And we had optimal harvest weather, and everything is in the barn. Our quality is excellent too.” Jason continued, “On the other hand, the market is very unsteady, and there is absolutely no reason for it. In a year where there is a shortage of onions, I can’t understand how pricing could be slipping. Again, there is just no reason for it.” He said, “Here in a couple of weeks, when everyone determines how many onions they actually have, we should see a rebound and prices should increase, but honestly the market shouldn’t have dropped in the first place. I just don’t get it. The costs to raise onions aren’t what they used to be, and we have to have higher prices. That’s just all there is to it.” On transportation, Jason said, “It’s been fine. We’ve had a fairly easy time getting trucks.”
Washington:
We caught Matt Murphy with L&M Cos. on the fly this week on Oct. 12. “We are seeing more demand this week than we have for the last three weeks,” he said. “We are done with our Colorado and Kansas onions so we are exclusively shipping out of Warden, WA, from now until around April. We have everything under cover there, and it looks like the crop is average on tonnage and size. We are shipping all sizes and colors, and we have very nice quality too.” Matt continued, “Here in the next several weeks we’ll see where everything settles out market-wise, but it looks like we have some solid footing with room to increase.” On transportation, Matt said it’s OK for now. “Trucks have been pretty easy to get, but that could change when the weather changes and we can’t use flatbeds. We are in a pretty good spot though. A lot of our customers secure their own trucks, so we don’t have to worry about it.”
John Vlahandreas with Wada Farms reported in from his Salem, OR, sales office on Oct. 12. “I am mainly selling out of Washington this week, and have started talking to the Idaho guys,” he said. “Demand has been a little slower. Demand is mostly for jumbo yellows and the bigger stuff.” John went on to say, “I know that most shippers feel like it’s slower because harvest is done and they aren’t super loaded down with trying to move onions and harvest too. Now, they can slow down a little and assess what they have for the season. This is also the typical time of year when demand slows down too. I mean look how many onions we’ve moved in the last month. It’s been a lot!” He said, “As far as the market goes, I know there are some differences in pricing, but some of it has to do with what you want in sizes and counts in the bag. Do you want a small jumbo, or what some call a ‘mumbo,’ or do you want a large jumbo? That might dictate price.” On transportation, John said it’s all fine. “Trucks are available and expensive, but everyone knows it, so it’s all good.”
Idaho-E. Oregon:
Josh Frederick with Snake River Produce in Nyssa, OR, provided us with a solid update on Oct. 12. “Things this week has slowed down due to the fact that other areas decided to get cheap on jumbo yellows for a few days to make a push on volume and then turn around and realize they are going to be shorting themselves so they better pull the reins back. That of course has the market all over the map,” he said. “For us, we have gone to four days a week run time due to supplies we will have for the season. We have all our onions in, and overall the crop has some size. With that said, the demand for big onions is there, but buyers want to pay a small jumbo price – and with that we have decided to just let things settle and run what we need for steady business and keep things put away.” Josh continued, “We are starting to see a little better demand this week on whites and reds and actually have had some steady business come in on medium yellows for retailers, so it’s good to see consumers out buying again. We always go through this week of the 2’s because everyone has been having to pay back credit cards and such for school supplies and clothes, and it slows the retail side of things down this time of year.” He added, “But cooler temps are in the air and everyone is finally making stews and roasts, and that helps our industry crank back up on consumer packs being needed.” Josh also looked at transportation, saying, “Trucks have been in abundance, but we will start seeing changes soon once weather sets in and other commodities begin being pulled from up north down to our valley. Same song and dance every year – difference is supplies are shorter than most anticipated on their yields and crops, and everyone is trying to figure out just how much of their own crop they have to fulfil contracts and commitments.” He concluded, “Eat more onions and make onions $20 again, or we farmers will not make it over time with the rising cost of fuel and fertilizer and labor alone! And that’s the bottom line.”
Steve Baker with Baker & Murakami Produce in Ontario, OR, weighed in on Oct. 12, saying, “Business is still on the quiet side this week like it has been the past two weeks, and I would say there isn’t any one color or size that is in greater demand than another so far this week.” Steve continued, “The market feels like it has leveled off somewhat from last week. With harvest wrapping up, hopefully we found the bottom of this market.” He said quality out of Idaho-E. Oregon looks good, and Steve also said there has been good availability of trucks. “Transportation has not been an issue at this time,” he said, adding there are “plenty of trucks available for the amount of loads being offered.”
Herb Haun with Weiser Onion Produce in Weiser, ID, told us on Oct. 12 demand had been slower, but he added, “That’s OK because it gave us a chance to concentrate on our storage side.” He said Weiser Onion Produce expected to have all its onions in storage by the end of that day, and he said, “The rest of the Treasure Valley should be finished with harvest and have everything in storage by the weekend.” Herb said the market overall was holding “pretty well,” and he said demand was seen “at both ends of the spectrum, with good demand for mediums and real good demand for colossals.” Reds were leading as far as color demand. Transportation, he said, “has been very good for us with flatbeds, and we’ll use them probably for another two to three weeks.”
Colorado Western Slope/Utah:
Don Ed Holmes with The Onion House in Weslaco, TX, said on Oct. 12 he’d seen the market “rebound some this week,” adding that demand had come back on Monday, and “prices solidified some.” Going into November and December, “the two best demand months,” demand should stay constant “in the short run and increase in the long run,” he said. “I’d say the health of the onion market has moved from a B- to a solid A as supplies ease off in the short run.” Colorado is shipping all three colors, with small whites going into Mexico, Don Ed said. He added, “The yellow deal has firmed up, and the red deal has remained constant.” In Utah, his growers expect to start running next week with yellows, and he said reds and whites will start soon after.
CROP
Rio Grande Valley/Tampico, Mexico:
Don Ed Holmes with The Onion House in Weslaco, TX, said on Oct. 12 he has about 15 percent of the Rio Grande Valley crop planted, “and by the end of this week we should have about 20 percent in.” A forecast for rain next week will show planting somewhat, he said. Don Ed also said the RGV could be down considerably in acreage for the 2023 season due to water shortages. In the Tampico region of Mexico growers are planting their April harvest onions now, he said. The season is expected to start in January with early sweets, and the regular season will begin in February. “The overall acreage there is down as well,” he said.
