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Northwest Farm Credit Services’ 12-month profitability outlook suggests profitable onion returns. Additional heat units in July and August improved onion quality. Market demand is stable for all onion colors. Jumbos and larger are in high demand. Producers with larger size profiles will benefit from high prices and strong demand.
Executive Summary
Drivers in the industry include favorable prices, harvest delays and stable demand for onions.
- The 2022-23 Northwest onion production is lighter than historical averages, with spring planting issues causing harvest delays and impacting onion size profiles.
- Favorable onion prices placed Northwest growers in a strong financial position to mitigate elevated input expenses and 2023 production costs uncertainties.
National Onion Situation
In the Northwest, harvest delays caused shipments from Idaho and Oregon which are down 19% season to date. The Columbia Basin was the only major onion production region in the U.S. with increased shipments season to date, up 2.2% year over year.
National onion shipments are down 15.1% season to date. Shipments were down in the San Joaquin Valley, Georgia, and New Mexico by 15.7%, 7.2% and 26.1% respectively. Season to date onion imports increased by 2.1%, including nearly double last year’s volume from Canada.
Onion exports for the 2022-23 crop season to date are down 12.8% year over year. Dried onions were the only export category to increase following strong summertime demand from Japan (the largest export destination for U.S. dried onions), up 24.4% year to date. Fresh or chilled onion exports declined to 308.5 million lbs., down 53 million lbs. from 2021.
