As the U.S.-Israel war against Iran enters its third month, the effects are being felt far beyond the battlefield. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that carries roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas, has sent energy prices climbing. But there is another crisis quietly building in America’s heartland: fertilizer prices are surging, and farmers say they cannot afford to plant.
The Strait of Hormuz is not just an oil route. About one-third of the world’s fertilizer ingredients also move through it. Countries in the Gulf region, including Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, account for roughly 49% of global urea exports and about 30% of ammonia exports, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation. Because fertilizer markets are globally connected, a supply shock in the Gulf hits American farmers too, even if the product never directly passed through U.S. ports.
