On the Swiss market, there was a very large amount of onions in storage, which were available until the new harvest. That is why the prices were low compared to the two previous years.
In August, the wholesale price dropped 31 cents from an already low price of 0.82 CHF (0.82 USD) per kg compared to the previous month. The price in retail also dropped to a low rate of 2.02 CHF (2.02 USD) per kg, which is unusually low for the summer months. The prices in retail are often not adjusted as quickly as in wholesale. The reduction of consumer prices turned out to be smaller than in wholesale.
2017: Low prices so far
From January to August, onions achieved on average a price of 1.03 CHF (1.03 USD) per kilo in wholesale and 2.10 CHF (2.10 USD) per kg in retail. Because of that, the wholesale price was 24% lower than last year, when it was on average 1.35 CHF (1.35 USD) per kg, and 10% lower than in 2015 (1.15 USD/kg). In addition, the consumer price between January and August was 10% respectively 5% lower than in the two previous years. Consumer prices of earlier years are also available, and these also show that the prices have not been as low since 2011.
Source: BLW
