Sweet Onion

History

Sweet onions represent a remarkable intersection of genetics, geography, and marketing savvy that transformed humble onions into regional celebrities. The phenomenon began with Bermuda onions in the late 1800s, prized for their mildness, but modern sweet onion fame started in Georgia in the 1930s when farmers in Vidalia discovered their local soil's low sulfur content produced exceptionally mild onions. A state legislator championed "Vidalia onions" in the 1970s, eventually securing federal trademark protection limiting the name to onions grown in specific Georgia counties. This sparked sweet onion regionalism across America: Washington's Walla Walla onion (cultivated by Italian immigrants since the 1900s), Texas's 1015Y Supersweet (developed at Texas A&M in 1983, named for its October 15 planting date), Hawaii's Maui onion (grown on volcanic slopes), and others. The sweetness in these onions comes from both genetics (varieties bred for low pyruvic acid, which causes onion "heat") and terroir (low-sulfur soils reduce pungency). Sweet onions contain similar sugar levels to regular onions—about 5%—but their low sulfur compounds let the sweetness shine through. These onions created devoted cult followings, with people ordering them by mail and restaurants featuring them on menus. Their limited storage life (weeks rather than months) only enhanced their seasonal appeal and premium pricing.