John Whelan: Irish food exporters facing treble hit from Iran war

Exporters invested in a diversification strategy to reduce dependence on the US

The Raz Lafan Gas Plan in Qatar. The plant was struck by Iran earlier this month, halting production.

Mon, 23 Mar, 2026 - 00:10

An expert in Irish and international trade, John Whelan is a former Chief Executive of the Irish Exporters Association, a role he held for more than a decade and previously served as an export industry adviser to the AIB Bank Group.

In the rapidly evolving conflict in the Middle East, exporters are generally being impacted by surging oil and gas prices. But Ireland's food exporters are more exposed than most.

The immediate exposure is to refrigerated products stuck in transit through the Strait of Hormuz, and their fresh and time-sensitive products transiting through the key airfreight hubs of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha, which have been partially knocked out in the region. This is followed by the rapidly escalating freight cost of shipping replacement stock, for that product already locked in transit, due to a combination of fuel cost increases and escalating insurance premiums.