The Strait of Hormuz has long been treated as the world’s ultimate energy chokepoint. Yet the current crisis, triggered by President Donald Trump’s disastrous war in Iran, is exposing yet another vulnerability. While the spotlight is on oil tankers and energy price spikes, a global food emergency is now haunting the planet.

Analysts now warn that disruptions around Hormuz place up to half of the world’s caloric supply at risk. The strait is after all a critical artery for fertilizers, grain flows, and agricultural inputs. Any prolonged disruption should therefore affect the entire chain of food production, from planting to distribution.

As experts Morgan D. Bazilian, Gabriel Collins, and Jahara Matisek argue, the ongoing war has exposed how global food security depends on fragile shipping routes and fertilizer supplies. US policymakers have notably been focusing on military power while neglecting industrial supply chains and “geoeconomic” risks. Washington itself will thus remain vulnerable to crises that drive food prices, instability, and weaken both its economy and global credibility as I’ve noted before.

To put it simply, without fertilizers, there is no agriculture; and without stable shipping routes, there is no global food system. Again, the FAO and UN agencies have already warned that Hormuz disruptions risk triggering a worldwide food........

© Blitz