Onion Production

Why is in news? NAFED is reported to have purchased around 4000 MT at a rate above Rs.900/quintal from the farmers directly during last ten days starting 24th February

Centre has directed National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited (NAFED) and National Consumers Cooperative Federation of India Limited (NCCF) to immediately intervene in the market for purchase of Red Onion (Kharif) for simultaneous dispatch and sale to the consumption centres accros the country, in the wake of reports of their falling prices.

It has opened 40 procurement centres where farmers can sell their stock and get their payment online

Prices remained stable due to consistency in demand and supplies as well export potential. However, month of February saw decline in prices of Red Onion, particularly in the State of Maharashtra

The experts attribute this fall due to overall increased production in other States, reducing the dependence on the supplies from the major producing District of the country i.e. Nashik.

The storage of onion is challenging as majority of the stock is stored in the open ventilated structures (Chawl) in the open fields and this storage has its own challenges

Therefore, there is need of scientific cold chain storage which is under trial for the longer shelf life of onions

To address such challenges, Government of India has set up the Price Stabilization Fund for procurement and storage of onion as buffer to keep the supply chain smooth during the lean seasons.

Onion production in India:

India is the second-largest onion-growing country in the world. The Indian onions are famous for their pungency and are available round the year.

The Major Onion producing states are Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Telangana.

Maharashtra is the leading producer with share of around 43%, Madhya Pradesh 16%, Karnataka & Gujarat contributing around 9% of national production

There is a lot of demand for Indian Onion in the world. The country has exported 1,537,496.89 MT of fresh onion to the world, worth Rs. 3,432.14 crores/ 460.52 USD Millions during the year 2021-22.

Modern packhouses for sorting, grading and packing the quality onions are available at production zones.

Guidelines have been framed to determine the compliance with maximum residue levels (MRLs) for the identified pesticides.

The grade designation and quality development parameters have also been set up for identifying quality onions.

Major Export Destinations (2021-22): Bangladesh, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, United Arab EMTs, Nepal and Indonesia.

Onion is a temperate crop but can be grown under a wide range of climatic conditions such as temperate, tropical and subtropical climate. The best performance can be obtained in a mild weather without the extremes of cold and heat and excessive rainfall.

Onion can be grown in all types of soils such as sandy loam, clay loam, silt loam and heavy soils. However, the best soil for successful onion cultivation is deep, friable loam and alluvial soils with good drainage, moisture holding capacity and sufficient organic matter.