UN warns Hormuz fertilizer impasse threatens food supplies

UN Under-Secretary-General Jorge Moreira da Silva said Wednesday that the United States and Iran must agree within weeks on a UN-backed plan to move fertilizer through the Strait of Hormuz, or parts of Asia and Africa could miss planting season. Speaking in Bangkok at IMF and World Bank meetings, he warned that missing the season would significantly drop agricultural productivity and significantly increase prices. The UN task force plan from March could activate within seven to 10 days of an agreement, using an Oman coordination centre to register vessels and oversee safe passage, with UN monitors verifying cargo at Gulf ports and added inspections if countries raise concerns. As few as five fertilizer vessels a day could supply countries in critical need. Before the war, Hormuz carried about one-third of globally traded urea and nearly half of seaborne sulfur. IFPRI said shipments from the Gulf have largely halted for more than six months and were a very negligible share of mid-June to mid-July ceasefire traffic. Since February 28 US and Israeli strikes, the US has pressed a naval blockade of Iranian ports while Iran has sought to tighten strait control; proposals have moved through intermediaries since a June ceasefire collapsed. Moreira da Silva said the fertilizer track can proceed while comprehensive talks continue and cited climate stress plus Black Sea, Red Sea and Hormuz disruptions together.