The Iran conflict has left tens of thousands of tonnes of food aid stranded, with the UN World Food Programme warning that millions more people may face acute hunger if disruptions continue. About 70,000 tonnes of food aid are stuck at sea as congestion and rerouting ripple through global shipping lanes, according to WFP supply chain director Corinne Fleischer.

Conflict in the Middle East has severely curtailed shipping through key choke points, with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz following Iranian strikes forcing vessels to reroute via the Cape of Good Hope. About 21,000 tonnes of wheat intended for southern Yemen remain stranded in Oman, while other shipments bound for the Democratic Republic of Congo are delayed at ports in Tanzania due to heavy cargo volumes and congestion.

With Iranian ports cut off, the agency has begun transporting food overland into Afghanistan from its humanitarian depot in Dubai through multiple countries, adding several weeks to journeys and sharply increasing fuel and logistics costs. WFP estimates that a further 45mn people could be pushed into acute hunger if the current disruption continues until June, on top of 318mn already acutely insecure worldwide.