IntroductionOnions are best known today as the staple in the food world, with almost every dish using some form of onion to bring together or enhance the flavor. Onions come in many different colors, shapes, sizes, and flavors, making them one of the most complex ingredients one can have in the pantry. Onions are full of layers and each represents the quality and value of one onion over another. Onions travel and grow all over the world, but some countries are specialized and quite dominant when it comes to production, import and export.OriginThe Onion otherwise known by its taxonomic classification as Allium cepa by Carolus Linnaeus is one of the oldest cultures known to man today. . First, according to Fritsch and Friesen (2002), depictions of onions were present in Egyptian objects dating back to 2700 BC, which indicate that onions were used then. The Egyptians believed that onions had a great quality that would help them in the afterlife, leading to their integration into their culture. The Columbian Exchange was in effect for the Romans as they transported them to countries like Germany and England. By the Middle Ages, onions had become one of the three main vegetables in Europe served to rich and poor alike. Finally, onion sprigs were already growing in North America when the Pilgrims first arrived Brewster (2008). How Onions Are Grown, Harvested, and Stored/Preserved Onions are grown from a seed which takes approximately 65 days or less to form good sized bulbs depending on type. wanted onion. Green onions are the youngest and can be pulled quite young. According to Tindall (1996), onions like cool weather in the early stages of their growth because they have middle of paper ......v.in/product_profileExchange, A. (2011). Onions: the 10 main exporters. Retrieved from http://agriexchange.apeda.gov.in/product_profileFaostat. (August 27, 2012). Onion statistics. Retrieved from http://faostat.fao.org/site/567/DesktopDefault.aspx?PageID=567Fritsch. and Friesen, (2002). Evolution, domestication and taxonomy. (pp. 5-30). Wallingford, UK: CABI Publishing. Garden Association, N. (May 3, 2012). Store the onions. Retrieved from http://www.garden.org/foodguide/browse/veggie/onions_harvesting/502Griffths, G. (2002). Onions: a global health benefit. Phytotherapy research. Onions Association, N. (April 25, 2012). All about onions. Retrieved from http://onions-usa.org/all-about-onions/colors-sizes-seasons-and-flavorsLibrary, H. (2012). Per capita consumption of onions. Retrieved from http://www.helgilibrary.com/indicators/index/onion-consumption-per-capita