Top Green Onion and Shallot Producing Countries

Green onions (also known as scallions or spring onions) and shallots are widely cultivated all over the world, with China leading global production by a significant margin, followed by countries such as India, South Korea, Japan, and Turkey. The cultivation of green onions and shallots traces back thousands of years, with both believed to have originated in Central or Southwest Asia. Shallots were first domesticated in the ancient Near East, spreading through trade routes to the Mediterranean and Europe, while green onions have been a staple in East Asian cuisine for centuries. Both crops were valued in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome for their culinary and medicinal properties. Over time, improved cultivation techniques and global trade have made green onions and shallots important crops in diverse climates, with modern farming concentrated in regions with rich soils and favorable growing conditions, such as China’s Shandong province and India’s Maharashtra state. Today, these alliums are essential ingredients in cuisines worldwide, contributing to the agricultural economies of their top-producing countries.

Data from United Nations FAO Stat