Development of dry onion production and foreign trade in Turkey and in the world

Abstract

Onion is one of the rare vegetables that are used in the kitchens of both the rich and poor families in the world regardless of the income level. In addition to containing many vitamin and mineral substances that are important for human nutrition, it is also a medical plant the use of which is known since the beginning of human history. Turkey holds an important spot in the world with regard to onion production and production area. The objective of this study was to examine dry onion production and foreign trade in Turkey and in the world during the 1996-2013 period. Whereas world dry onion production was 44. 8 million tons during the 1996-2000 period, it increased by 1.9 times thus reaching 84.8 million tons. India showed the greatest development during the same period with an increase of 4.3 times, whereas a decrease of 13% took place in the production of dry onion in Turkey. China is ranked first in the world with regard to dry onion production with a share of 26.35%, whereas India is ranked second with a share of 22.76% and Turkey is ranked number six with a share of 2.25%. When dry onion yield is examined, it can be seen that the world average is 21.07 ton/ha, that Ireland is ranked first with an average of 68.75 tons/ha, that South Korea is ranked second with 64.58 tons/ha and that Turkey is ranked number 11 with a share of 29.86 tons/ha. Whereas world dry onion export was 3.4 million tons during 1996-2000 period, it increased by two times thus reaching 7 million tons in 2013. India is ranked first in the world in dry onion export with a share of about 21.06%, the Netherlands is ranked second with a share of 17.43% and China is ranked third with a share of 10.64%. Whereas Turkey is ranked number 10 in the world with a dry onion export share of about 2.25%. About 52% of Turkish dry onion export is made to Iraq. When world dry onion import is examined, it can be observed that the top five countries are Malaysia (6.71%), the USA (6.38%), England (6.34%), Bangladesh (5.26%) and Japan (4.41%). Main problems in the dry onion sector of Turkey are that the manufacturers are not organized sufficiently and that there is no production plan.