School of Economic Sciences

Farm Management

2004 Estimated Cost and Returns for Producing Onions, Columbia Basin, Washington

Author: Herbert Hinman* and Gary Pelter**

In 1992, approximately 8,000 acres of onions were produced in the Columbia Basin. By 1998, the acreage of onions produced had risen to approximately 17,000. In 2004, an estimated 19,000 acres of onions will be produced in the Columbia Basin. This publication presents 2004 projected cost and return information for representative Columbia Basin onion enterprises producing onions under rill irrigation, center pivot irrigation, and drip irrigation. The projected prices are those prices to the farmer minus storage and marketing costs. Producers, lenders, and others should find this information helpful in identifying enterprise strengths and weaknesses, planning production adjustments, estimating financial requirements, and resolving numerous other business management problems.The overall objective of this study was to develop enterprise budgets for onions grown under three different irrigation systems. These were the specific objectives: (1) To identify production practices representative of well-managed onion enterprises grown under rill irrigation, center pivot irrigation and drip irrigation in the Columbia Basin; (2) to provide estimates of capital requirements, production costs to storage, and returns; and (3) to provide current and prospective producers with a procedure and tool for analyzing the profitability of their onion enterprise.

*Herb Hinman is an Extension Economist at Washington State University.
**Grant/Adams Area Extension Educator, WSU.

 

EB1979E - Available for download in pdf format.

Photos provided by Gary Pelter

EB 1979E - 2004 Estimated Cost and Returns for Producing Onions, Columbia Basin WA

Heading using the h3 tag

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

School of Economic Sciences , PO Box 646210, Hulbert Hall 101, Washington State University, Pullman WA 99164-6210,
509-335-5555, fax 509-335-1173, Contact Us