The traditional method of storing onions involved removing the onions from the soil with their stems, drying them, and storing them in a cool basement, cave, or dark warehouse until consumption. Unfortunately, this type of basic storage results in between 40% and 80% waste. Unfortunately, neither economics nor our old world can tolerate such waste anymore.

Onions cannot be refrigerated immediately after harvest. They must first be dried. After this process, which lasts several days, the ripening stage begins. After the ripening process, which promotes the formation of the onion skin and develops the variety’s characteristic skin color, the temperature of the ripe onions is gradually reduced by up to 0.5 degrees Celsius per day.

Onions are refrigerated between 0 and 2 degrees Celsius, depending on the variety. In modern refrigerated storage, onions can be stored for up to 10 months without waste. Ventilation is crucial in onion storage. Onions that are released to the market after storage are not shipped directly from the warehouse. Instead, they are heated to room temperature for a week to prevent condensation.

However, only 20 million of the 100 million tons of onions produced worldwide are stored using these modern methods, and unfortunately, the practice of wasting onions continues.