In the last nine months of the current year (June 2022 – February 2023), Morocco has already exported more than 65,000 tons of onions, which is more than the previous year 2021/2022 (60 000 tons). Also, Moroccan onion exports have increased sixfold in the last five years!
Onions are one of the most exported vegetables in Morocco. In 2022, onions were the third most exported vegetable from Morocco after tomatoes and peppers. Onion exports usually peak in July-August and then decline till February.
The geography of Moroccan onion exports has changed in recent years. In 2017/2018, Moroccan exporters were mainly concentrated in Mauritania, Ivory Coast and some other African countries. In addition, one-third of onion export volumes had the Netherlands as their destination according to East-Fruit.
To date, the Netherlands accounts for only 6% of total onion exports from Morocco. Meanwhile, the shares of Senegal, Mauritania and Mali have increased significantly, reaching 16%, 26% and 28% respectively. Morocco is now the largest exporter of onions to Mali and the second largest onion supplier to Senegal and Mauritania.
Therefore, onion exports from Morocco are currently focused on West Africa or the western part of the African Sahel. Eastfruit previously reported that Sahelian countries are being forced to increase imports of many agricultural products. Today, the Sahel is threatened by severe famine, and Morocco, together with other suppliers such as the Netherlands or Belgium, fills the food gap in the region.
