World "Sleepwalking Into Food Crisis" Amid Hormuz Blockade, UK Official Warns

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to warn that Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz could leave tens of millions vulnerable to hunger as she hosts a major aid summit in London, Alisha Rahaman Sarkar reported for The Independent.

UK officials warned that prolonged disruption in the Strait of Hormuz could threaten global food supplies and fertilizer shipments.

In a speech in London, Cooper is expected to say the world is “sleepwalking into a global food crisis” as the Hormuz blockade disrupts global fertilizer supplies.

The disruption comes at a crucial time for world agriculture, with Cooper expected to warn that fertilizer shipments must resume through the strait within weeks to avert a broader crisis.

Markets are reportedly pricing in weaker harvests, while the World Food Programme estimates that 45 million people could face acute food insecurity if the conflict continues through midyear.

“We cannot risk tens of millions of people going hungry because one country has hijacked an international shipping lane,” Cooper is expected to say.

She added that “Iran’s continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz while the agriculture clock is ticking shows why we need urgent global pressure to get the strait reopened, fertilizer and fuel moving, and ease cost-of-living pressures.”