{"id":105110,"date":"2026-03-09T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/?p=105110"},"modified":"2026-03-09T03:41:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T03:41:06","slug":"could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/","title":{"rendered":"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yes \u2014 Hormuz matters for way more than oil and gas: <\/strong>Roughly one-third<\/a> of global fertilizer shipments pass through the Strait of Hormuz, linking Gulf production hubs with agricultural markets worldwide. With shipping through the passageway disrupted, fertilizer markets are already repricing the risk \u2014 raising the prospect of higher crop input costs and, eventually, food prices.<\/p>\n

For import-dependent Gulf economies like ours<\/strong>, the question is not whether fertilizer markets move \u2014 but how quickly those shocks filter into the region\u2019s food supply chain. <\/p>\n

\n

The fertilizer market is where the math starts for the food supply chain<\/p>\n

Nitrogen fertilizers are the driver of modern agriculture. <\/strong>Methane is converted into ammonia and then upgraded into urea and other nitrogen products used to boost crop yields. Around half of global food production depends on synthetic nitrogen fertilizers, with 180 mn<\/a> tons consumed globally each year.<\/p>\n

The Gulf dominates the market, and nearly all of its output must move through Hormuz. <\/strong>Around 55-60 mn tons of urea are shipped by sea annually, with the Middle East accounting for some 40-50%<\/a> of that volume. Iran exports<\/a> roughly 5 mn tons, while Saudi Arabia contributes around 4-5 mn tons through producers like Sabic.<\/p>\n

Energy shocks have amplified the pressure since <\/strong>natgas<\/strong> is the main input for nitrogen <\/strong>fertilizers. <\/strong>\u201cNatural gas\u2019 key role as a fertilizer input could hit agricultural producers, impacting food prices,\u201d MENA Director at Horizon Engage Andrew G. Farrand tells EnterpriseAM. Qatar\u2019s shutdown of the Ras Laffan LNG export facility sent reverberations through the industry. Qatar accounts for roughly 11%<\/a> of global urea exports, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Alexis Maxwell. The country exports some 5.5-6 mn<\/a> tons of urea and ammonia annually from its Qafco complex.<\/p>\n

Market reax: <\/strong>Prices for granular urea jumped USD 60<\/a> per ton after the effective closure of the strait. In the US Gulf, spot for urea jumped USD 60-80 from last week, with traders warning that increases could follow if disruptions persist.<\/p>\n

Supply chains were already tight before the conflict escalated:<\/strong> Urea markets turned bullish earlier<\/a> after drone damage hit a Russian nitrogen plant, tightening availability. The US, despite producing domestically, still relies on imports from the Middle East that transit Hormuz.<\/p>\n

Fertilizers may not even be the first agricultural bottleneck to bite:<\/strong> For some high-tech growers, specialty inputs such as pollinators and biological pest-control supplies can become harder to replace before fertilizer shortages become tight. That means prolonged disruption can start weighing on yields through the wider agricultural input chain \u2014 not just through urea prices alone.<\/p>\n

Adding fuel to the fire, the EU <\/strong>announced<\/a><\/strong> that it will keep carbon levies on imported <\/strong>fertilizers <\/strong>under its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, rejecting calls to suspend the scheme despite concerns it could push up costs for farmers. \u201cThe decision is ill-timed, especially given the repercussions of the ongoing war, the rising energy prices, and the halt in urea production from Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia \u2014 the largest gas exporters. Therefore, prices will rise much higher than the ETS carbon price increase,\" Osama Henein, H2lligence founder and CEO, tells EnterpriseAM.<\/p>\n

\n

The impact<\/p>\n

The hit to food supply in our region may not be immediate: <\/strong>Gulf growers carry several weeks \u2014 five to eight \u2014 of core inputs on hand, including fertilizers, helping cushion short disruptions, CEO of Pure Harvest Sky Kurtz tells EnterpriseAM.<\/p>\n

But that does not mean it\u2019s not building: <\/strong>\u201cWe would start to feel pain after a period of time if there were complete blockages and we couldn't get goods through the borders,\u201d Kurtz tells us. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While Gulf growers have several weeks of buffer stock, prolonged blockages will inevitably filter into higher food prices<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":105111,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_primary_brand":0,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2640],"tags":[10,238,1556,4852],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"class_list":["post-105110","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-logistics","tag-enterpriseam-ksa","tag-logistics","tag-oil-gas","tag-trade-and-logistics","wpautop","entry"],"acf":{"mongo_id":"b951e38c-c218-4c11-a7ec-35914a492dc9","order":"4","is_powered_by":false,"story_type":"1","photo_url":"https:\/\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg","photo_position":"above","homepage_title":"","full_issue_title":"Fertilizers: Another commodity susceptible to regional escalation","related_issue":[105103],"teaser":"While Gulf growers have several weeks of buffer stock, prolonged blockages will inevitably filter into higher food prices"},"yoast_head":"\nCould Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields? - KSA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While Gulf growers have several weeks of buffer stock, prolonged blockages will inevitably filter into higher food prices\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"KSA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-09T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-09T03:41:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"enterpriseam admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"enterpriseam admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"enterpriseam admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/person\/ca597032db7e4db868359c123cec256d\"},\"headline\":\"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields?\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-09T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-09T03:41:06+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/\"},\"wordCount\":592,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"EnterpriseAM KSA\",\"logistics\",\"Oil & gas\",\"Trade and logistics\"],\"articleSection\":[\"LOGISTICS\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/\",\"name\":\"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields? - KSA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-09T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-09T03:41:06+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/\",\"name\":\"KSA\",\"description\":\"The State of the Nation\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#organization\",\"name\":\"KSA\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/ent.news\/internal\/42482.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/ent.news\/internal\/42482.svg\",\"caption\":\"KSA\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/person\/ca597032db7e4db868359c123cec256d\",\"name\":\"enterpriseam admin\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/enterpriseam.testing.projectsarea.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/author\/enterpriseam\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields? - KSA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields?","og_description":"While Gulf growers have several weeks of buffer stock, prolonged blockages will inevitably filter into higher food prices","og_url":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/","og_site_name":"KSA","article_published_time":"2026-03-09T00:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-03-09T03:41:06+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"enterpriseam admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"enterpriseam admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/"},"author":{"name":"enterpriseam admin","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/person\/ca597032db7e4db868359c123cec256d"},"headline":"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields?","datePublished":"2026-03-09T00:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-09T03:41:06+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/"},"wordCount":592,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1","keywords":["EnterpriseAM KSA","logistics","Oil & gas","Trade and logistics"],"articleSection":["LOGISTICS"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/","url":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/","name":"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields? - KSA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1","datePublished":"2026-03-09T00:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-09T03:41:06+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/03\/09\/could-hormuz-closure-disrupt-global-crop-yields\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Could Hormuz closure disrupt global crop yields?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#website","url":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/","name":"KSA","description":"The State of the Nation","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#organization","name":"KSA","url":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/ent.news\/internal\/42482.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/ent.news\/internal\/42482.svg","caption":"KSA"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/#\/schema\/person\/ca597032db7e4db868359c123cec256d","name":"enterpriseam admin","sameAs":["http:\/\/enterpriseam.testing.projectsarea.com"],"url":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/author\/enterpriseam\/"}]}},"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?resize=600%2C400&ssl=1","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?resize=600%2C600&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"enterpriseam admin","author_link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/author\/enterpriseam\/"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ent.news\/2026\/3\/453.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105110","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105110"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105110\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":105134,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105110\/revisions\/105134"}],"acf:post":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue\/105103"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/105111"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105110"},{"taxonomy":"brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/brand?post=105110"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=105110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}