UN Official Warns of Food Crisis Risk as Hormuz Fertilizer Plan Stalls

A senior United Nations official has warned that parts of Asia and Africa could face a food security crisis if Iran and the United States fail to reach agreement soon on a UN-backed plan to move fertilizer through the volatile Strait of Hormuz.

Jorge Moreira da Silva, the UN under-secretary-general, said on Wednesday that it is "absolutely critical" for the two countries to accept the proposal within the coming weeks, as the planting season approaches. The proposal calls for a UN-staffed coordination center in Oman to help register vessels and monitor their safe passage through the shipping lane that carries much of the world's key fertilizer inputs.

"If we miss that planting season, agricultural productivity will decline significantly and the impact on prices will increase significantly," Moreira da Silva told Reuters on the sidelines of International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings in Bangkok, Thailand.

Farmers operate on strict seasonal calendars, and even small delays can severely affect yields.

'Negligible' fertilizer shipments

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has been severely disrupted since the US-Israeli war against Iran began, with Iran targeting vessels in the strait and the US and Iran exchanging fire in and around the shipping route.

The disruption has affected global supplies of urea, the world's most widely used nitrogen fertilizer, as well as seaborne sulfur, a key input. Before the war, about one-third of global urea and nearly half of seaborne sulfur passed through the strait.

Although some ships have been able to transit during the crisis, fertilizer products account for only a "very negligible" share of the cargo moving through, according to the Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute.

Moreira da Silva said the UN-backed fertilizer mechanism, drafted in March, could be activated within seven to 10 days if both Iran and the US agree.

Under the plan, UN monitors would work with local authorities at Gulf ports to verify cargo loading. Ships would be tracked during transit, and further inspections could be carried out if countries raise concerns about a vessel or its cargo, Moreira da Silva said. He did not say why the US and Iran have yet to agree.

He added that just five ships a day passing through the Strait of Hormuz could sustain the flow of fertilizer to countries in urgent need.

'Let us work'

According to Moreira da Silva, the UN mechanism could operate in parallel with negotiations aimed at reaching a "comprehensive agreement" restoring freedom of navigation in the strait.

Iran and the US have exchanged proposals through intermediaries since a temporary ceasefire collapsed in June. Efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz have stalled over Tehran's conditions and Washington's insistence on addressing Iran's nuclear program from the outset.

"What we say to them is, while the parties continue to discuss moving toward a comprehensive agreement, let us work, let us do our job," Moreira da Silva said.

His appeal comes amid growing concern that fertilizer shortages could affect global food supplies.

In May, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization warned that fertilizer scarcity could tighten food supplies from late 2026 into 2027, potentially hitting countries already facing climate or other crises especially hard.

In South Asia, where much of the region depends on imported fertilizer, farmers are already struggling with soaring costs and shortages. On Wednesday, farmers in Spain took to the streets to protest rising production costs amid high oil and fertilizer prices.