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Shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz are hitting the tree nut industry, whose members are scrambling to find other routes and markets for their products during a significant time of year for sales.
Vessel traffic through the strait has come to a near-standstill since the beginning of the conflict between Iran and the U.S. and Israel. According to data from the Hormuz Strait Monitor, only nine ships had transited it on Tuesday. Traffic is down 90% from normal levels, the monitor indicates, though Iran is allowing some ships from nations like China, Russia, India, Iraq and Pakistan to pass through.
However, Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Ali Bahreini said in a post on X Friday that Iran would “facilitate and further expedite the safe passage of humanitarian shipments through the Strait of Hormuz,” with operational details to be finalized with the United Nations “in due course.” He said Iran remains “firmly committed to ensuring, maintaining and safeguarding the security and stability of the strait for all non-hostile countries.”
Samantha Ayoub, the director of workforce and business policy for the International Fresh Produce Association, told Agri-Pulse that countries throughout the Middle East region import a significant amount of U.S. tree nuts. Last year, the U.S. sent $1.75 billion in tree nut exports to the Middle East, representing around 20% of all ag exports to that region.
Of the U.S. tree nuts that went to the Middle East in 2025, roughly 10% were delivered in March of last year, said American Farm Bureau Federation Economist Daniel Munch. On average, around 40% of the tree nut shipments the U.S. sent to the Middle East between 2023 and 2025 were exported between February and May, he said.
Demand for tree nuts in the region is particularly strong in the months leading up to Ramadan, a month-long period of prayer, fasting and reflection for Muslims that began this year on Feb. 17 and lasted until around March 19.
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Munch said the tree nut industry has already seen losses in recent years due to pricing conditions.
He estimated in January that the almond sector may have seen a $3.6 billion sector-wide loss due to various costs in 2025, or around $2,658 per acre. He warned that the export disruptions could further add to these losses.
“This is an industry that is already losing thousands of dollars per acre per year in the United States just due to pricing conditions,” Munch said. “So any small marginal sway in market access that our producers lose out on risks further losses for our tree nut producers.”
Robert Verloop, the executive director and CEO of the California Walnut Board and Commission, estimates that 70,000 tons of walnuts may have seen impacts from the disruptions, though he said that number could increase as disruptions continues.
In just the first two weeks of the conflict alone, there were over 400 containers of walnuts held up due to the disruptions in th
Robert Verloop (Agri-Pulse photo)e strait, Verloop said. Each container can store roughly 40,000 pounds of walnuts, which adds up to around 16 million pounds of impacted walnuts.
Verloop characterized the 2025 walnut harvest as “strong” which raises the importance of markets like those in the Middle East. He said the industry saw a surge in sales to the region between November and January but that shipments have slowed in recent months due to the Iran conflict.
Amid the disruptions, Verloop said walnut shippers have been rerouting or looking for other markets. Disruptions in go-to-market strategies force sellers to readjust “almost on a daily basis,” which he said is a difficult proposition when considering exchange rates, dollar values and “all the things that are pulling on you in an international market,” he said.
“We’re really good at adjusting to market conditions,” Verloop said of the California specialty crop industry. “But it’s never easy, and this situation is really taxing both the growers and the handlers and the shippers."
Bikram Hundal, vice president of operations at Sequoia Nut Co. and Custom Almonds, said about 15 containers of tree nuts have been caught up in disruptions in the strait as shipping lines go “back and forth trying to find alternate ports.” Some containers have already been diverted, and although he has more contracts in place, he has been told to hold off on sending shipments to one of the region’s key ports. Reselling the nuts elsewhere would likely mean taking a loss, he said.
On top of that, he said his shipments in transit are likely to see additional surcharges of $2,500 per container or more.
“This was not expected,” Hundal said. “But it definitely does impact our operations and our businesses."
Roger Isom, the president and CEO of the Western Tree Nut Association, told Agri-Pulse that he’s heard of shipping companies beginning to add fuel surcharges to export shipments.
Based on conservative estimates, the walnut industry is expected to see $15 million in additional costs from potential surcharges, loading penalties and demurrage charges related to the conflict, Verloop said.
Munch said other notable U.S. agricultural exports to the Middle East include cotton, alfalfa and ice cream.
