According to CNN news Report, 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.
Kibsons International, a UAE-based fresh food and vegetable retailer, imports 50,000 tons of food per year sourcing food from countries like South Africa and Australia and says the focus now is on rerouting shipments.
At the moment, the supply chain is extremely challenging,” said Daniel Cabral, procurement director at Kibsons.
According to UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a British military-run monitoring agency, almost two dozen vessels have been attacked in the region since the start of the war on February 28, including a cargo vessel off the coast of Oman. Shipping companies are therefore unwilling to take the risk of moving through the Strait of Hormuz.
Another issue is the number of vessels already at sea. Kibsons has “tons” of food mostly fresh in containers on ships currently waiting outside the strait, Cabral disclosed that with no confirmed arrival dates or even ports. “There is a lot of uncertainty,” he said.
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