agriculture 24 April 2026 Daily Monitor (Uganda)
US-Iran War Sparks Fertiliser Shortages and Food Crisis Fears for Global Agriculture
The ongoing US-Israel-Iran conflict is driving up fuel and transport costs while disrupting fertiliser supplies, threatening a global food crisis. Key production regions and shipping routes like the Strait of Hormuz face instability, hitting farmers worldwide. Source: https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/magazines/farming/effects-of-the-us-iran-war-on-agriculture-5435574
The escalating war between the US, Israel, and Iran is set to trigger fertiliser shortages and a potential worldwide food crisis. Rising fuel prices are inflating transport costs, exacerbating the issue.
Fertiliser prices are climbing due to political unrest in producer nations and blockades on vital delivery routes to Africa, Asia, and beyond. The Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint, is now impassable amid the conflict.
Modern farming, transformed by the 20th-century Green Revolution, depends on synthetic fertilisers, pesticides, and irrigation—inputs tied to fossil fuels. High-yielding crops today require heavy doses of nitrogen-based products like urea and ammonium nitrate, unlike traditional organic methods using manure and compost.
About 70% of global ammonia exports come from the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia as the second-largest supplier. Sulphur, essential for phosphate fertilisers, also flows through disrupted channels.
Adam Hanieh, professor at SOAS University of London and author of Crude Capitalism, highlights how this fossil fuel-linked system now faces vulnerabilities. Matt Simpson, CEO of Brazil Potash, warns that tightening markets could force farmers to cut applications or switch to lower-yield crops, quietly hiking prices.
Source: Daily Monitor (Uganda)