onions

Onions are the number one all rounder - we use them in so many everyday dishes, have you ever wondered how and where they are grown?

Every August at our farm in Coldham, Cambridgeshire, it’s all hands on deck during the onion harvest, to get the best crop possible for our Co-operative Food stores.

planting

We aim to plant our onion sets in the early spring, usually about the end of February just when things are warming up.

We cultivate the soil to produce a fine level seedbed before planting the sets about an inch deep and 3 inches apart in rows, to grow the perfect size onions for our stores.

tending

Once the crop is growing we regularly inspect it to check it is healthy. We apply plant protection products only if we need to control weeds or diseases which would otherwise damage the crop.

We also regularly measure the amount of water in the soil and if necessary, apply irrigation using a large boom to gently water the crop.

By early August the onions are usually full size and ready for harvesting. Samples are taken before the harvest to check their size, quality and suitability for storage.

harvesting

The first part of harvesting involves cutting off all the excess leaf and leaving just the bulbs and the onion neck. We take great care to leave enough neck on the onion so when it dries in store it forms a protective seal, to keep our onions moist.

We then ‘windrow’ the onions, which involves lifting the bulbs out of the soil and then placing them gently back on the ground to dry in the sun. This means they will be much cleaner when we harvest them and avoids burning a lot of fuel in the onion store to dry the crop. We leave the onions to dry for about 24 hours before picking them up.

Once the onions are dried we carefully lift them off the ground and place them in trailers ready to take back to the farmyard for sorting.

At the farmyard the onions are checked for quality and the team remove any stones, weeds or damaged onions. We then load the crop onto lorries before transporting them to the specialist store where they remain until November time, ready to be packed and delivered to the Co-operative stores.

eating

Our roots farm manager and his team at Coldham take great pride in producing great quality onions. Find them in our food stores all year round in 500g and 1.25kg bags.

From curries to bolognaise, soups, stews, stir-fry’s and rice dishes; onions are one of the most versatile vegetable around.

Instead of buying ready-made sauces and condiments, why not have a go at making your own? Soften a few onions with some butter for 10 minutes and throw in a generous glug of red wine and some muscovado sugar to caramelise. Simmer gently for about half an hour to form a sticky marmalade that goes perfectly with pork, beef or hard goat’s cheese.