Last week I wrote about the Strait of Hormuz.
I explained why that narrow waterway sits at the center of the global energy system. Roughly 20 million barrels of oil move through it every single day. When ships slow or stop there, oil prices rarely stay calm for long.
The warning came after Iraq suddenly cut production by nearly 1.5 million barrels per day because exports stalled. Storage tanks were filling faster than tankers could leave port.
It was a reminder that oil markets depend on movement just as much as supply.
But after publishing that essay, something became clear to me.
I only told half the story.
Because a disruption in the Strait of Hormuz does not stop at oil.
Energy prices are only the first domino.
The same corridor that moves oil also carries fertilizer, refined fuels, and critical shipping traffic that supports global agriculture.
When pressure builds in Hormuz, the consequences can move through supply chains in ways most investors never consider. Shipping costs rise. Fertilizer becomes harder to move. Diesel markets tighten.
Eventually, the shock reaches something far more politically sensitive than crude oil.
Food prices.
And history shows that when food prices rise quickly, economic stress can turn into political instability with surprising speed.
So today I want to widen the lens.
Because the Strait of Hormuz is not only an energy chokepoint.
It is one of the most fragile links in the global food system.
The Corridor That Feeds the Planet