Iran War Jeopardizes Global Food Security
Key takeaways
- The largely blocked Strait of Hormuz has become “a critical failure point for global food security,” Máximo Torero Cullen, chief economist of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, warned this week.
- Approximately a third of the world’s seaborne fertilizer trade passed through the waterway before Iran closed the shipping lane, according to U.N.
- We deliver climate news to your inbox like nobody else.
Why this matters: environmental and climate reporting with long-term consequences.
Republish A Kashmiri farmer spreads synthetic fertilizer around an apple orchard on May 23 in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. Credit: Firdous Nazir/Nur Photo via Getty Images Related How Oil Fuels Conflict and War—and Who Profits As Energy, War and Climate Collide, a Conference in Colombia Charts a Path Beyond Fossil Fuels Global Finance and Energy Leaders Warn of Potentially Dire Impacts From Iran War Share This Article Republish Most Popular An Iowa Town Spent $800,000 on a New Well. It Pumps Undrinkable Water. Colorado River Faces ‘Devastating Consequences’ If Another Dry Winter Lands, Experts Warn DOE Restarts Home Efficiency Rebates, and Electrification Is the Biggest Loser The worldwide fallout from the U.S. war in Iran isn’t limited to gas prices.
The largely blocked Strait of Hormuz has become “a critical failure point for global food security,” Máximo Torero Cullen, chief economist of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, warned this week.
Approximately a third of the world’s seaborne fertilizer trade passed through the waterway before Iran closed the shipping lane, according to U.N. Trade and Development. As a result of the conflict, the World Bank projects that fertilizer prices could jump an average of 31 percent this year.