A CNN report released this Saturday, March 21, revealed that..
”Oil and liquefied natural gas tankers moving through the Strait of Hormuz carry around 20% of the world’s supply. But for countries on the Persian Gulf, the waterway is more than just an energy route – it’s a lifeline for more than 100 million people.
Now, as the United States and Israel’s war with Iran chokes this vital stretch of water, it’s also straining food supply into the region.
Thriving in this harsh climate takes effort. With summer temperatures topping 50 degrees Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) and little cultivatable land, much of the Gulf Arab states’ drinking water comes from the sea via desalination plants. Most of their food, however, must come from abroad.
Saudi Arabia imports more than 80% of its food, the United Arab Emirates around 90%, and Qatar about 98%. In Iraq, too, the bulk of food imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz, despite the country’s access to two major rivers.
In total, the majority of the food shipments to the region pass through the strait, a passage that is now all but blocked due to attacks on commercial ships in the area.
With the waterway effectively closed, food shippers are scrambling to find alternative routes – routes that are costlier and logistically strained, and that cannot fully replace lost flow, raising the prospect of higher prices and reduced choice for consumers.
Even Iran depends on the Strait of Hormuz for much of its trade.
The World Food Programme (WFP) warns that supply chains may really be on the brink of the most severe disruption since Covid-19 and the start of the full-scale Ukraine war in 2022.
Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the WFP, says shipping costs have risen sharply.
Retailers say that, while there’s no imminent hunger crisis in the Gulf region, the conflict has upended sea freight.
The price of doing business
Buried in the fine print of shipping contracts are “wartime clauses” that have now kicked in, Cabral said. These clauses protect ships from entering dangerous territories and give them the right to choose a dropoff port for shipments.
One of Kibsons’ containers, originally destined for Jebel Ali Port in Dubai, is now in Mundra, India. Another was rerouted to Colombo, Sri Lanka. But simply reaching land is far from the end of the conundrum.
The shipping line has said, ‘what would you like to now do with it? Would you like to sell it within India?’ Or, you know, ‘what is your plan with it?’ And that puts us in a very difficult position,” Cabral added.
A family sits against the backdrop of a dockyard off the UAE’s coastal city of Fujairah, on the Strait of Hormuz, on February 25, 2026. Giuseppe Cacace/AFP/Getty Images
Insurers and shipping companies now see the wider Middle East region as one of heightened risk.
Shipping companies have slapped $4,000 surcharges per container destined for “the entire Middle East,” Cabral said. On dry land, trucking and logistics costs range from $4,000 to $9,000 per container to move goods onward to the UAE, Cabral added.
I mean, we were looking at some of our containers out of Europe, and what we would normally pay is 3,000 euros (around $3,400) for on freight. The quote came in at 14,500 euros, and that’s to get it to Jeddah,” Cabral said, referring to the Saudi Red Sea city. “Then you would still need to truck it from there with even additional costs, so it is just too expensive.”
And those costs will eventually be passed on to the consumer. Cabral said Kibsons might increase prices by up to 20% on some products, such as dairy and some fresh produce. “We have about a month of inventory of fresh produce in warehouses.”
Air freight is also a vital lifeline for the region, but this has also been plagued by problems in recent weeks.
problem of moving cargo ships laden with food and other vital goods would remain as tankers carrying oil would be prioritized.
Trump and his administration remain bullish about ending the war on their terms. But with each passing day, the consequences are spreading beyond the battlefield, threatening the flow of food, fuel and other essentials to millions across the region.”
—CNN
