Vidalia Onion

History

The Vidalia Onion industry began in 1931 when a farmer named Mose Coleman grew sweet onions in Toombs county. At $3.50/50-lb bag (a princely sum during the depression), other growers began to grow these mild onions. During the early years, Vidalia was an important city on the north-south route to Florida. Folks passing through Vidalia in the spring could buy these onions. Word about these mild onions began to spread among travelers.

The establishment of a farmers’ market and the Piggly Wiggly distribution warehouse in Vidalia further helped Vidalia onion’s reputation to spread. By the mid 1970s, there were about 600 acres of production.

Over the next 10 years, production grew as these onions were promoted nationally. In 1986, the state legislature of Georgia gave legal recognition to the onion production region, which consists of twelve whole counties and parts of 8 others. In 1989, Federal Marketing Order No. 955 gave federal recognition to these unique onions. This marketing order established the USDA program for the Vidalia Onion Committee which oversees Vidalia onion production including collecting money from growers for promotion and research.

About 4,000 acres of onions were produced in 1989. In 1990, controlled atmosphere (CA) storage came to the Vidalia onion industry. This storage technique, adopted from the apple industry, involved storing onions in low oxygen, high carbon dioxide refrigerated rooms. This meant that onions that were only available for a couple of months in late spring could now be stored for four to five months, dramatically increasing the marketing window.

Over the past several years, the industry has grown dramatically. In 2006, almost 15,000 acres of onions were produced. The value of these onions is in excess of $132 million.