CNBC reports that escalating conflict in the Middle East is disrupting trade through the Strait of Hormuz—an essential corridor not only for oil and gas but for fertilizers vital to global agriculture. Analysts warn that reduced shipments could raise farming costs, strain harvests, and trigger renewed global food price pressures.
“Higher energy and input costs risk reigniting global food inflation just as retail food prices had returned to more historical levels in many countries,” according to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
The article highlights vulnerabilities across the Gulf region, Sub‑Saharan Africa, and parts of South and Southeast Asia, where reliance on fertilizer imports is high. Rising energy costs alone may further elevate retail food prices worldwide.
“The bigger impact on consumer prices will not be the impact on agricultural commodities but the fact that energy is a big portion of the total retail food bill,” said Joseph Glauber, senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute.