CORINNE, Utah. – For decades, onions have been a must-have ingredient in kitchens everywhere. They bring flavor, depth, and sweetness to countless dishes, but they almost always come with one unavoidable side effect. An undetectable frontal attack from an invisible enemy that, unless you were wearing contacts, hit you right in the face – painful onion tears. 

I speak only a little melodramatically from personal experience, having recently sliced open some onions for a family gathering. That’s why I was intrigued when I began seeing the bright pink billboards throughout Utah advertising locally grown onions without the threat of tears. 

If you haven’t gone down the rabbit hole of finding where the sting comes from, a short lesson in chemistry is in order. According to the American Chemical Society, “when you cut an onion, its cells are ruptured, releasing enzymes that break down amino acid sulfoxides into unstable sulfenic acids. These acids rapidly rearrange to form the volatile gas. The gas floats up and dissolves in the moisture of your eyes, reacting with water to form a mild, dilute solution of sulfuric acid. This acid irritates your eyes’ nerve endings, triggering glands to produce tears and flush out the irritant.” 

That’s where Smileys come in. Grown by Onions 52 – a Utah-based grower and shipper of onions, with growing partners across the U.S. – Smileys® are the result of more than 30 years of development, naturally created by repeatedly crossbreeding milder varieties of onions to deliver great flavor without the tears. With careful growing practices and patience, the program expanded year after year.

Today, that original test plot has grown into a nearly five-month sweet onion program, spanning from late October through mid-April, with Smileys shipping to customers across the United States and Canada. Growing regions have also expanded into Northern Utah, where the program now partners with local growers, including the Holmgren Family, bringing additional volume of the specialty onion and decades of growing expertise. 

Riggin and Laura Holmgren grow Smileys onions on their farm in Box Elder County and love being able to grow a product for families that now has less downside. 

“The onions store well and become milder over time,” Riggin said. “I’m glad that we can dedicate even more acres of our farm to growing these onions right here in Utah.” 

The Holmgrens were the perfect addition to the Smileys program. With generations of farming experience, the Holmgrens bring dedication, care, and Utah-grown pride to the program. The partnership with the Holmgrens and other local growers, including Russ Fowers and K&B Farms, allows Smileys to reach more tables nationwide while continuing the legacy of sweet, tearless onions that consumers have come to love. 

“With Smileys, I love the idea that families who have an aversion to cutting onions can now enjoy a tear-free onion experience,” Laura said. “As a mom, I can see something simple like this influencing the dinner table. Smileys could mean more taco meat sautéed with onions or a Sunday roast in the crockpot accompanied by an onion. These kinds of food innovations break down barriers to consumption. As a Smiley grower and as someone with children, I really appreciate that!” 

Utah-grown Smileys sweet onions have also connected with partners in their communities, with partnerships with Brigham Young University and Utah State University, as well as Utah PGA golfer Patrick Fishurn, to promote the onions. At a basketball game this year in Logan, a student sank a full-court putt to win a semester of paid tuition courtesy of Smileys. 

“Attending USU basketball games has always been a blast for our family, and so when Smileys started sponsoring scholarships through fun halftime contests, we were thrilled to see the company we grow for showing up in the community that way,” Laura Holmgren said. “Smileys have become a topic of conversation at Utah’s only land-grant university, and we hope the message is clear – food production and food innovation are alive and well in Utah. It’s an industry I’d love to see the next generation pursue.” 

Similar to using a traditional yellow or sweet onion, Smileys can be used fresh on sandwiches or in salads or cooked down for use in protein recipes or for an onion soup. They hold up well during cooking and can be stored for longer periods of time in the pantry, due to their lower water content compared with traditional sweet onions. 

With the growing season underway, look for Smileys onions this fall at several retail locations in Utah, including Maceys, Lin’s, Ridley’s, Kent’s, Walmart, and Costco. For more information, visit smileysonions.com.