{"id":98315,"date":"2026-05-05T06:23:51","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T06:23:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/98315\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T06:23:51","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T06:23:51","slug":"africas-fertiliser-crisis-how-iran-war-and-hormuz-disruptions-threaten-food-systems-and-nutrition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/98315\/","title":{"rendered":"Africa\u2019s Fertiliser Crisis: How Iran War and Hormuz Disruptions Threaten Food Systems and Nutrition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Conflict in\u00a0the Persian Gulf<\/a>\u00a0is disrupting fertiliser supplies, and Africa\u2019s food systems stand to lose.<\/p>\n

Agrifood systems<\/a>\u00a0(the activities that connect the people, investments and decisions involved in producing and delivering food and agricultural goods) rely on a steady flow of inputs like fertiliser, along with markets, infrastructure and policy and trade decisions.<\/p>\n

These food systems can absorb shocks and find new ways to keep supplies flowing under pressure. But they are also sensitive. A disruption in one part of the system has an impact on others, as the\u00a0conflict in Iran<\/a>\u00a0that erupted in late February 2026 shows clearly.<\/p>\n

Read more:\u00a0Iran has a powerful new tool in the Strait of Hormuz that it can leverage long after the war<\/a><\/p>\n

This is how the war on Iran affects sub-Saharan African farmers and food systems: The Gulf countries (which include Iran) are the biggest exporter\u00a0globally<\/a>\u00a0of fertiliser ingredients. Iran alone is the\u00a0fourth biggest global exporter<\/a>\u00a0of urea, a key ingredient in fertiliser \u2014 and\u00a0one of the cheapest<\/a>\u00a0suppliers. Nigeria, Ghana, Togo, Kenya, Tanzania and North Africa all\u00a0buy urea<\/a>\u00a0from Iran.<\/p>\n

Qatar is another\u00a0key urea producer<\/a>\u00a0and exporter but stopped making urea in early March 2026 because it needs gas to do so \u2014 and its gas plants were hit by Iranian missiles.<\/p>\n

Shipping in the narrow\u00a0Strait of Hormuz<\/a>\u00a0shipping channel next to Iran is\u00a0down by 95 per cent<\/a>\u00a0since the start of the war. This means the fertiliser that is still being made in Gulf countries has been\u00a0prevented<\/a>\u00a0from leaving the region.<\/p>\n

This is bad news for sub-Saharan Africa which imports\u00a0about 80 per cent<\/a> of the fertiliser it uses. This\u00a0comes from<\/a>\u00a0countries including\u00a0Russia,<\/a>, Europe, Ukraine,\u00a0India, China<\/a>\u00a0and the Gulf states. Malawi, for example,\u00a0imports 52 per cent<\/a>\u00a0of its fertiliser from the Gulf. Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa also import ingredients from the Gulf states and use it to make fertiliser that they export.<\/p>\n

Read more:\u00a0Has the Strait of Hormuz emerged as Iran\u2019s most powerful form of deterrence?<\/a><\/p>\n

Fertiliser prices have already\u00a0increased<\/a>. And, unlike oil, there is no internationally coordinated strategic reserve for fertiliser. When the supply is disrupted,\u00a0it stays disrupted<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I am a researcher and practitioner who looks at how evidence and policy can be used to make better decisions in food systems and agriculture. Recently, I was part of a team that\u00a0investigated<\/a>\u00a0how to end hunger and all forms of malnutrition through changing the agrifood system so that nutritious food becomes more available, affordable, or accessible to poor and often rural communities.<\/p>\n

We are especially interested in the kinds of interventions that attract investment from both the private and public sectors.<\/p>\n

Read more:\u00a0Africa\u2019s superfood heroes \u2013 from teff to insects \u2013 deserve more attention<\/a><\/p>\n

Our research found<\/a>\u00a0that food in Africa is often available but not affordable, safe or diverse enough to make up healthy diets. For example, over the past 50 years government policies have pushed subsidies, price incentives and procurement programmes towards growing staple crops (maize, wheat, rice). But on their own, these crops are not very\u00a0nutrient-dense<\/a>. Focusing mainly on them means that more nutrient-dense foods have been crowded out.<\/p>\n

Our research<\/a>\u00a0found a number of ways that Africa\u2019s agrifood systems can provide more nutritious foods in future. This can also happen when fertiliser supplies are limited. We highlight some of them below.<\/p>\n

From pandemic to war to Hormuz: Africa\u2019s fertiliser shocks<\/p>\n

Fertiliser disruptions and the damage to agrifood systems in Africa have happened before.<\/p>\n

Between\u00a02020 and 2024<\/a>, fertiliser supply chains were strained by COVID-19 and then the war in Ukraine. African farmers absorbed those shocks through reducing the amount of fertiliser they used on their crops. But this\u00a0led to<\/a>\u00a0lower yields, lower earnings and tighter household budgets.<\/p>\n

Read more:\u00a0Russia\u2019s war with Ukraine risks fresh pressure on fertiliser prices<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to remember that fertiliser supplies are\u00a0entangled with<\/a>\u00a0decades of subsidy policy, public investment and debates about what kind of agriculture African governments should be promoting. They\u2019re\u00a0highly contested and politicised<\/a>, shaped by history and power as much as by agronomic evidence and household economic choices.<\/p>\n

The current threat of shortages is only part of the picture.<\/p>\n

10 ways for African countries to cope using less fertiliser<\/p>\n

The food systems in Africa that survive the fertiliser crisis linked to the Iran war will be those that put in place nutrition-focused programmes and continue investing in innovations that reduce dependence on fertiliser.<\/p>\n

Our report identifies ten high-impact interventions that improve nutrition and dietary outcomes. Several are particularly relevant right now:<\/p>\n

Farmers should start growing fruit, vegetables and pulses, and farming with trees (agroforestry). This improves the health of the soil and produces nutrient-dense food.<\/p>\n

Read more:\u00a0Indigenous trees might be the secret to climate resilient dairy farming in Benin, says this new study<\/a><\/p>\n

Home gardens can improve diets and household food security, if people get training and nutrition education.<\/p>\n

Sustainable aquaculture (fish) and livestock farming, including poultry, boosts production and protein consumption.<\/p>\n

Bio-fortified crops, such as\u00a0high-iron beans<\/a>\u00a0grown in Rwanda and vitamin A-rich,\u00a0orange-fleshed sweet potatoes<\/a>\u00a0in Mozambique, build nutrition directly into the crop during production. Because they contain more nutrients, they don\u2019t waste as much fertiliser.<\/p>\n

Storage and distribution infrastructure reduces spoilage of food. It also improves the quality of food.<\/p>\n

Read more:\u00a0Scientists are breeding super-nutritious crops to help solve global hunger<\/a><\/p>\n

Foods can be fortified (have essential vitamins and minerals added) when they are being processed. These improve nutrition without requiring any changes in how food is grown.<\/p>\n

Food and agricultural handling practices must be introduced to keep crops safe to eat.<\/p>\n

Nutrition education helps people make better everyday food choices so that, when food is available, people eat more varied and nutritious diets.<\/p>\n

Social protection programmes, such as cash transfers and food vouchers, help families during times when prices rise.<\/p>\n

Providing school meals specially designed to be nutritious offers a high return on investment.<\/p>\n

What needs to happen next<\/p>\n

Our research emphasises that these interventions can only work as a bundle or package of support. Gender matters too; our research found that women don\u2019t always get to eat nutrient dense food even when there is more available at home.<\/p>\n

These interventions represent what we know works today. But governments and researchers should look beyond these too. For example, scientists at the\u00a0Centre for Research on Programmable Plant Systems<\/a>\u00a0(including scientists at Cornell University) are engineering specialised plants known as \u201creporter\u201d plants. A reporter plant is typically placed strategically in a field of crops to act as an early warning system.<\/p>\n

They have developed a\u00a0tomato plant<\/a>, for example, that turns vivid red when soil nitrogen levels drop to critically low levels. This plant gives farmers precise, real-time information about what their fields need.<\/p>\n

Tools like these could transform that relationship farmers have with fertiliser: Reducing waste, cutting costs, and building a form of fertiliser intelligence into the farming system itself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Conflict in\u00a0the Persian Gulf\u00a0is disrupting fertiliser supplies, and Africa\u2019s food systems stand to lose. Agrifood systems\u00a0(the activities that…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":98316,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[3496,16739,34448,102,34,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-98315","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-persian-gulf","8":"tag-africa","9":"tag-fertiliser","10":"tag-food-systems","11":"tag-hormuz","12":"tag-iran","13":"tag-persian-gulf"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@iran\/116520541491841189","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98315","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98315"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98315\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98316"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98315"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98315"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98315"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}