UN agency warns closure of Strait of Hormuz poses global food security risk

BRUSSELS - Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Director General Qu Dongyu warned Monday that any disruption or closure of the Strait of Hormuz would represent a global food security risk rather than a regional crisis, Anadolu Ajansi reported.

He stressed the need to keep agricultural trade routes open amid rising global pressures.

Opening the 181st Session of the FAO Council in Rome, Qu said the situation highlights growing vulnerabilities in global agrifood systems, particularly in relation to energy, fertilisers, and food production inputs.

"The closure of the Strait of Hormuz is not a regional issue - it is a global food security risk," Qu said, noting that a significant share of global crude oil, liquefied natural gas, and fertiliser exports pass through the strategic waterway.

"In the immediate term, we have called for keeping trade open, avoiding export restrictions on all agricultural inputs, protecting humanitarian food corridors, and securing alternative logistics routes," he said.

Qu stressed that the most immediate concern is not an outright food shortage but a "fertiliser and production shock" that could significantly increase production costs for farmers across Asia, Africa and Latin America, forcing difficult decisions on crop output and input use.

According to FAO, around 20-30 per cent of global fertiliser trade and large volumes of energy and sulfur shipments transit through the strait, making it a critical artery for global food production systems.

Qu further warned that climate-related shocks, including a potential El Nino event later this year, could compound existing food insecurity in vulnerable regions already affected by conflict and economic instability.

The agency also pointed to ongoing humanitarian operations, including livestock vaccination campaigns in Sudan and emergency feed support in Gaza, which it said are helping protect livelihoods and stabilise local food production systems. - BERNAMA