Onion Johnny Onion Johnny is the nickname given to the French farmers and agricultural labourers that sell distinctive pink onions door-to-door in England , Wales and Scotland . Although having declined in number since the 1950s to the point where only a few remained , the Onion Johnny was once very common , and with the renewed interest since the late 1990s by the farmers and the public in small-scale agriculture , numbers have recently made a small recovery . Dressed in striped shirt and beret , riding a bicycle hung with onions , the Onion Johnny became the stereotypical image of the Frenchman , who was in the past probably the only contact that the ordinary British had with France . Originating from the area around the town of Roscoff in Brittany , Onion Johnnies are farmers who found a more profitable market in England than at home , and typically bring their harvest across the English Channel in July to store in rented barns , returning home in December or January . The trade apparently began in 1828 when the first successful trip was made by one Henri Ollivier . Although journeys are now made by ferry , small sail ships and steamers were previously used , and the crossing could be hazardous . Seventy Johnnies died when the steamer SS Hilda sank at Saint-Malo in 1905 . The golden age was during the 1920s ; in 1929 nearly 1 , 400 Johnnies imported over 9 , 000 tonnes of onions to the UK. The Great Depression , followed by the devaluation of the Pound in the early 1930s , ended the era as trade suddenly fell , reaching a low in 1934 , when fewer than 400 people imported under 3 , 000 tonnes . In the aftermath of World War II , onions , in common with other goods , were subject to import restrictions , and were obliged to trade through a single company . By 1973 the number of Johnnies had dropped to 160 people and 1 , 100 tonnes , and had fallen again to around 20 Johnnies by the end of the 20th century . An Onion Johnny museum opened in the town of Roscoff in 2004 . An application has recently been made to give the Roscoff onion protection under the French Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée designation . External links Friends of Onion Johnnies ( in French ) Le musée des Johnnies ( in French ) Onion sellers in Sunderland A modern Onion Johnny `` Onion Johnnie '' article from the International Herald Tribune BBC short film ( Real Video ) Categories : Agricultural occupations | History of Britain | History of France In other languages : Français 