From Farm to Table, Iran Blockade-Based Food Inflation Continues

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Written by Paul Wiseman for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land, Texas)

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Summary

Farmers and consumers alike are pressed by rising fertilizer and fuel costs, resulting from Hormuz blockades. According to Industrial Info Resources data, more than 28,000 food and beverage projects worldwide total $428 billion of investment.

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Hormuz Blockage Hurts U.S. Farmers

Farmers and consumers alike are pressed by rising fertilizer and fuel costs, resulting from Hormuz blockades.

Almost seven in ten U.S. farmers can't afford the fertilizer and other supplies they need, says an April 3-11, 2026 American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) survey. It's worst in the south, where 80% say they can't afford those things, whereas the Midwest, at 48%, is the least bad. The blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil is shipped, along with many fertilizer components, has reduced supplies, resulting in widespread inflation on those products.

According to Industrial Info Resources data, more than 28,000 food and beverage projects worldwide total $428 billion of investment.

Much of the difference between the south and Midwest depends on how many pre-bought their fertilizer before the U.S.-Iran conflict started. Fuel costs for farm equipment is also on the rise, along with other supplies. Some of the resulting commodity inflation won't hit consumers until after the harvest. But other costs are hitting home now.

For more information on how the blockades along with droughts and other issues are affecting prices, read Industrial Info Resources' April 20, 2026, article - Rising Fuel, Fertilizer Costs Hike Global Food, Beverage Prices. And for the World Bank's predictions on other price and supply chain prices, read April 30, 2026, article - World Bank Sounds Alarm Bells Over U.S./Israel War With Iran Amid Refinery Outages.

It's Not Just Farms

Like Gulf Coast shrimp? Get ready: According to a Fox News report, "The Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA) said fuel costs 'routinely account for more than 50%' of shrimpers' total operating expenses, warning that elevated prices could limit access to sustainable shrimp stocks off the U.S. coast." And a shrimper may load more than 12,000 gallons of diesel for each weeks-long shrimping trip.

In truth, all types of meat and dairy farmers are seeing rising costs from feed costs as well as from refrigeration and processing and shipping to distributors.

Delivery Surcharges Mount Up

The same diesel that is raising farm costs is adding to grocers' overhead by prompting supply houses to boost per-pallet delivery charges. At least four major food suppliers in Canada have added such charges. They include Sunrise Farms, CTS Foods, Maple Leaf and Tree of Life. U.S. firms including Sysco and U.S. Foods and Performance Food Group are also adding fuel surcharges to their invoice prices.

At that point the retailers are faced with whether/how much of this to absorb or to pass on to customers. Many economists are predicting food costs to rise by around 2% in the next few weeks, according to the Food Institute, with others seeing food prices rising by more than 3% by yearend.

Here's some insight into how trucking figures into food costs. In today's world, population is focused away from farms and in municipalities, putting consumers sometimes thousands of miles away from the sources of their favorite foods. A 2023 USDA report on the impact of truck costs on food prices showed that "trucks ship 83 percent of agricultural products and 92 percent of dairy, fruit, vegetables, and nuts."

It's Not Just Food, and It's Not Just Consumers

Get deliveries from Amazon? Starting April 17, Amazon imposed a temporary 3.5% fuel and logistics surcharge on U.S. and Canadian third-party sellers using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA). And while DoorDash has said it's not raising prices, it is instituting a credit card system that would return drivers 10% on fuel costs to help mitigate the gas pump inflation.

Institutions that serve food such as schools, hospitals, nursing homes, food banks, and certainly restaurants and hotels are facing the same dilemmas of if-or-how-much to pass along to already-stressed consumers.

Key Takeaways

• Much of the U.S. food supply comes from either across the nation or around the world--through fuel-burning trucks or ships.
• Blockades involving the 20% of oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz are raising prices for every step of the supply chain, including farming.
• While transportation costs could quickly drop in an ending of the blockades, inflation for food itself would likely continue due to fuel and fertilizer expenses being embedded from the start.

About Industrial Info Resources
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, Industrial Info Resources is tracking over 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 Trillion (USD).