As the holiday season approaches with its promise of joy, togetherness, and mouthwatering feasts, BASF | Nunhems is thrilled to announce the return of Sunions®, the revolutionary tearless onions.
The variety will be returning to Waitrose as part of its No 1 brand and will be available from early December.
“Whether it is in the kitchen or around the Monopoly board, nobody wants tears at Christmas,” says Naz Ahmed, UK customer marketing at BASF | Nunhems.
“Onions are a key ingredient throughout the festive season, adding depth of flavour to nearly every savoury dish from soup and stuffing to gravy and chutney. But for too long, cooks and chefs creating these culinary masterpieces have paid a price. That’s changing, thanks to Sunions.”
Launched in the UK in 2022, Sunions® are the result of more than three decades of conventional breeding by BASF’s vegetable seeds business and are heralded as a breakthrough in vegetable innovation.
“Sunions are a real gamechanger for the onions sector,” explains Naz. “Unlike conventional varieties that maintain their strength in storage, Sunions mellow and sweeten over time.”
With over 40 years of experience in growing, packing, and processing onions, Moulton Bulb is a family business based in Lincolnshire that truly knows their onions. Each year they grow 25,000 tonnes of onions and shallots, and work with other growers to pack around 100,000 tonnes of alliums.
“Despite four decades in the family business, I still can’t cut a regular onion without shedding a tear,” admits Moulton Bulb’s director, Robert Oldershaw. “That’s why Sunions have been such a hit – sales grew by over 30% last year.”
Harvested in July, it takes at least four months for Sunions® to develop their tearless quality. Moulton Bulb thoroughly tests the produce before it heads to the supermarkets.
“We routinely measure the pyruvic acid content, the biochemical marker of onion pungency,” explains Robert. “With Sunions, we also conduct blind tests where panellists cut up various varieties, hold them to their eyes and inhale to see whether they make them cry. We won’t release Sunions to retailers until they pass these tests.”
Having proved a valuable addition to the business’ portfolio, Sunions® are earning their place in the family farm’s kitchen.
“When cooked, Sunions have a very similar flavour profile of other brown varieties and that makes them a useful alternative. But my favourite way to eat Sunions is raw – in a salad or in a cheese and onion sandwich. They are beautifully sweet, have that lovely onion flavour without overpowering other ingredients.”
“Sunions’ story is a great example of BASF | Nunhems’ work in creating vegetables people love,” adds Naz. “These onions are more than a vegetable; they’re a touch of groundbreaking science in your holiday meals.”
“Keep your eyes peeled for Sunions, labelled as ‘tearless onions’ in your local Waitrose.”
