Photos: Bermuda Onion Day Held In St David’s

Bermuda Onion Day was celebrated today [May 23] at Carter House in St. David’s, featuring historic displays and, of course, Bermuda onions.

The event featured onion delicacies including onion and kale soup, onion quiche, sandwiches and more. Other items available for purchase included sherry pepper sauce, calendars, curried fish, and pulled pork sandwiches. Chef Joe Gibbons was involved in the food preparation, while Larry Mills offered historical talks.

Introduced to the island in the early 1600s, the sweet and succulent Bermuda onion was first exported to the east coast from St. George’s in 1847.

Onions quickly became Bermuda’s major export crop, with hundreds of farmers realising the market potential. By the middle of the 19th century, Bermudians became known as “Onions” and Bermuda itself was widely referred to as “The Onion Patch.”

Following World War I, although the onion export from Bermuda started again, the U.S. imposed higher import duties, slowing it down considerably. More over, by that time a farming community in Texas began developing their own similar onions, even calling them Bermuda Onions in order to sell and export them more easily.

In the 1930s, the Bermuda Trade Development Board tried to curb that trend by sending postcards to their overseas buyers that stated, “It is the flavour of a genuine ‘Bermuda’ that is so different.”

But the campaign was an exercise in futility and the era of Bermuda farmers exporting onions came to an end, with tourism replacing agriculture as the island’s economic mainstay. However, the “Bermuda onion” nickname endures.

Click to enlarge photos:

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