Indian Fresh Onions

India is the second largest onion growing country in the world. Indian onions are famous for their pungency and are available round the year. Indian onions has two crop cycles, first harvesting starts in November to January and the second harvesting from January to May.

Varieties:
The major varieties found in India are Agrifound Dark Red, Agrifound Light Red, NHRDF Red, Agrifound White, Agrifound Rose and Agrifound Red , Pusa Ratnar, Pusa Red, Pusa White Round. There are certain varieties in yellow onion which are suitable for export in European countries Tana F1, Arad-H, Suprex, Granex 55, HA 60 and Granex 429.
Areas of Cultivation :
The Major Onion producing states area Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. Maharashtra ranks first in Onion production with a share of 18 %, however, in terms of productivity, Gujarat ranks first at 22.9%.
India Facts and Figures :
Onion is the fourth most important commercial vegetable crop covering an area of 593 thousand hectares which is 10% of total vegetable area. The production of onion in the country is 7515 thousand MT accounting for 8.9% of the total vegetable production.
The export of Onion products has increased from Rs 1035.78 Crores in 2007-08 to Rs 1827.52 Crores in 2008-09.
Modern packhouses for sorting, grading and packing of the quality onions are available at production zones. Guidelines has been framed to determine the compliance with maximum residue levels (MRLs) for the identified pesticides .Grade designation and quality development parameters has been set up.
Major Export Destinations (2008-09) : Bangladesh, Malaysia, UAE, Sri Lanka, Pakistan.