Working together towards the best onion
In the onion sector, everything revolves around quality, reliability and delivering the right product at the right time. For MSP Onions, a major international player in the onion market, this is evident every day in its processing, grading and advice to growers.
The collaboration between MSP Onions and Hazera is built on a shared ambition: working together on varieties that perform in practice and create value throughout the entire chain.
“For both of us, the most important thing is that a high-quality onion is produced,” says Lindert Moerdijk, Sales Director at MSP Onions. “For us, so we can ship it all over the world, and for Hazera, so growers choose their varieties.”
Quality you cannot correct
According to Lindert, the strength of good varieties lies mainly in characteristics that can no longer be corrected later in the process. A lot can be sorted out during grading, but not everything can be solved.
“We pay close attention to skin retention and firmness, especially later in the season,” he explains. “I can remove rot and anything that is visible, but you cannot influence how many skins an onion has or how firm that onion still is. That’s simply not possible. Hazera varieties such as Dormo and Centro naturally have those qualities and perform very well.”
Varieties with strong intrinsic quality are therefore extremely important. This becomes particularly evident during longer storage periods. The later in the season, the more critical quality becomes. “That is also an important part of the collaboration between Hazera and MSP,” says Lindert. “Not only focusing on the peak season, but actually extending the season, so growers can also be rewarded for storage.”
Grower profitability as the guiding principle
MSP Onions has access to a wealth of practical data from its daily processing activities. This knowledge is valuable for the further improvement of varieties. “How well does a variety really perform in a particular region? We have that insight,” Lindert explains. “Hazera also recognises that we know a great deal and have strong technical capabilities.”
According to Lindert, the collaboration between MSP Onions and Hazera is above all practical and informal. Both parties know the market, understand the challenges and share the same goal: a better product and a better return for the grower. “We know exactly what we can expect from each other,” he says. “We very often say the same things to growers, and that creates a natural connection.”
For MSP Onions, grower profitability is central. The choice of variety therefore depends heavily on the crop, the region and whether the onions need to be stored for a long period.
“For a grower, an important question is whether the onions will be stored for a long time or not,” Lindert explains. “Based on that, you arrive at certain varieties. There are growers who always want to store onions for a long period in a specific growing area. In those situations, Hazera is simply a very good choice for us.”
According to Lindert, Hazera takes the onion market seriously, and that is exactly what MSP Onions looks for in a partner. “For us, that is of vital importance,” he says. “We focus purely on onions, and we are very large in that market. But for both of us, grower profitability is simply the most important thing. For years, Hazera has had a strong understanding of where to be in order to obtain the right data.”
That shared focus forms the foundation of the collaboration, both today and in the future.
