Advocacy groups have warned that higher energy prices, due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, would drive up the cost of fertilisers, agrochemicals and transport — and ultimately worsen hunger in the world’s poorest regions, Anadolu reports.

Sabine Minninger, a senior policy advisor at Bread for the World, says that many low-income countries already struggling with the impacts of global warming now face another major crisis, as the prolonged conflict with Iran severely affects those heavily dependent on oil and energy imports.

“If this war goes on and if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, it will have a tremendous impact on food security, especially in the poorest countries, such as those in Africa,” she tells Anadolu. “We are very concerned that a hunger crisis is on the way.”

With the war between the US and Israel in its eleventh week, disruption has intensified along the Strait of Hormuz. Hundreds of vessels are reportedly stranded in a narrow waterway that serves as a vital artery for petrochemicals, fertilisers, and other refined products.

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