Farmers across the United States are facing surging costs of crucial supplies amid the ongoing Middle East conflict and effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the CEO of a sustainable agriculture company. He emphasized that at the beginning of the conflict many American farmers had not yet received their essential supplies as they were still weeks away from planting season. “The US, heading into this conflict, had only bought about half of its fertilizer,” he said. But now planting season is approaching, agriculturalists across the country are scrambling to obtain materials, which Abbott said have seen prices spike since the conflict began on February 28. “We’ve seen that urea prices are up 50%,” he clarified, adding, “In the northern parts of the country, it’s up almost 100%.”For context: In his first address as supreme leader a short while ago, Mojtaba Khamenei confirmed that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed.

Source: CNN March 12, 2026 07:50 UTC