Brits have been warned salad could be a victim of the Middle East chaos as energy costs soar.
Fresh foods such as cucumber, tomato and lettuce are likely to see the quickest price rises because they are grown in heated greenhouses and have short supply chains, according to experts.
The prospect was highlighted as oil soared again, with markets fearing there is no quick end in sight to the standoff between Iran and the US. Brent Crude was trading at more than $108 a barrel this morning, the highest in around three weeks.
Ministers have warned that Brits will face fallout from the chaos until at least next year.
Cabinet minister Darren Jones said yesterday that the fallout from 'what Donald Trump has done' would have a 'long tail' even if the Strait of Hormuz reopened immediately.
The war has already forced up pump prices for petrol and diesel as well as putting pressure on jet fuel, but the full effects have yet to feed into the supply chain.
The Middle East is a crucial source for products such as fertiliser and CO2, which is used in agriculture, industry and medicine.
Fresh foods such as cucumber, tomato and lettuce are likely to see the quickest price rises because they are grown in heated greenhouses and have short supply chains, according to experts
Brent Crude was trading at more than $108 a barrel this morning, the highest in around three weeks
Cabinet minister Darren Jones said yesterday that the fallout from 'what Donald Trump (pictured) has done' would have a 'long tail'
Keir Starmer told Mr Trump in a call yesterday that there is an 'urgent need' to reestablish the crucial shipping passage - through which around a fifth of the world's oil and gas typically passes.
A Downing Street readout said Sir Keir warned the restrictions were having 'severe consequences for the global economy and cost of living for people in the UK and globally'.
Karen Betts, chief executive of the Food & Drink Federation (FDF), told the Times that 'anything grown in a greenhouse' would be among the first products to see price rises.
The Ofgem price cap on energy bills does not apply to businesses, leaving them exposed to immediate higher costs.
Dr Liliana Danila, chief economist at the FDF, said growers had been suggesting they 'would either finish the production cycle early or that they would go and buy abroad to still fulfil their contracts'.
She said some greenhouse farmers 'had gone to retailers to ask for price renegotiation since they couldn't deal with the rising energy costs'.
Speaking on the BBC yesterday, Mr Jones played down the prospect of shortages in the shops.
But he said: 'You are going to see prices go up a bit as a consequence of what Donald Trump has done in the Middle East.
'That's probably going to come on line not just in the next few weeks, but in the next few months. There's going to be a long tail from this.'
Pressed on how long that would be, Mr Jones said: It really depends on how long the negotiations take to unblock the Strait of Hormuz...
'I think our best guess is eight plus months from the point of resolution that you will see economic impacts coming through the system.'
Keir Starmer told Mr Trump in a call yesterday that there is an 'urgent need' to reestablish the crucial shipping passage - through which around a fifth of the world's oil and gas typically passes
He added: 'People will see higher energy prices, food prices, those types of issues - flight ticket prices - as a consequence of what Donald Trump has done in the Middle East.'
The Government's Middle East Response Committee is due to meet again tomorrow with stock levels of goods being closely monitored.
However, officials are adamant that people should continue to fill their cars as normal, that jet fuel is still arriving for planes, and that there is enough CO2 available.