Onions from Australia!!!

hardpressed

I bought some onions from Sainsburys on Saturday, only just noticed that they came from Australia, didn't think to look where they were from just, rather foolishly assumed they'd be British. Don't we grow onions in Britain any more? I feel a strongly worded letter to Sainsburys is in order!

zerodashzero

The floods ruined the British crops last year. I remember reading somewhere that beacuse of they to expect a price rise. I loooooooooove onions!

unrich

How about spring onions instead?

Oh, of course, they come from Mexico! At least the ones in Tesco do.

Its funny that given the cost of oil rising, its still cheaper to fly/ship stuff around the world rather than grow it down the road.

A_fiend_for_life

Not seen Australian ones yet!! Come to think of it I think I've only seen uk onions on sale and the occasional Spanish perhaps.

There should at least be curbs on it, especially when products are in season but the more suppliers supplying from around the globe the more pressure buyers can put on domestic growers because such and such a country will do them cheaper. So the food industry lobbies to prevent fuel charges and tax etc.

luckycat99

I saw something on the news a while ago about this. The onion crops in this country were ruined and they commented that onion producers here would suffer as a result and they talked about the environmental implications of importing them. Any onions that are English this year are poorer quality and going funny - I noticed that they were really poor and then the stroy came on the news. I'm trying to grow my own - fingers crossed!

vyseyboy

Australian crops didn't have a good year at all either this/last year. Some of the worst droughts country-wide in decades.

Very bizarre observation!

nickj_2

i did read a few weeks ago in a paper that they fly prawns from scotland to thailand to be peeled - processed as it's cheaper than getting it done in this country ,.....

Cardew

Local supermarket is selling sprouts from Belgium!

Violetta_2

I had an onion explode into mush when I touched it in tesco, OH thought it was hilarious I screamed and jumped 3 foot, but thanks for explaining re the bad crops ,might have been what was up with this 1.
But still Australia!!! No not on, surely if there was a poor crop here theres a few counties with decent crops between here and there, able to ship them.

moonrakerz

My local Morrisons had almost identical packs of asparagus on sale last night, at the same price each.
One was English - the other was from Peru !

Purple_Peril

Cardew wrote: »

Local supermarket is selling sprouts from Belgium!

Presumaby Brussels sprouts (groan, sorry!)