Rice shipment heading for Toronto food banks struck near Iran as war continues

Effects of the Mideast conflict are now reverberating in Toronto after a shipment of rice meant for the city's Daily Bread Food Bank was struck Wednesday in the Strait of Hormuz near Iran, the food bank's CEO says.

"All of the details are still being finalized — but what we know is one of the ships that was carrying about six of our containers, and each container having about 40,000 pounds of rice, was struck by one of the Iranian drones," Neil Hetherington told CBC News in an interview.

"So we know the ship is damaged, we know it's not sunk. We don't know whether or not our individual container was damaged, but we know this would be a significant delay to receive those six containers."

Thirteen vessels have been attacked in the strait since the U.S. and Israel began their war on Iran on Feb. 28, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO). At least seven crew members have been killed over that time period.

The UKMTO's website lists an attack in the Strait of Hormuz Wednesday where a cargo vessel was hit by an "unknown projectile" that caused a fire on board. The vessel requested assistance and crew members evacuated, the agency says, with a "skeleton crew" remaining on board.

It has yet to be confirmed that this vessel was carrying the Daily Bread's shipment.

The Strait of Hormuz is bordered by Iran, which has warned it would not allow any oil exports to pass through while it is at war. With merchant ships and crews fearing for their safety, marine traffic has come to a standstill. 

UN Trade and Development estimates as many as 151 ships were passing through the strait daily in February. On Saturday, that number was down to just four, with the conflict effectively blocking a key shipping route that is the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean.

Hetherington says it's too soon to say just how long the shipment will be delayed, though he expects an update in the next week or so. It will depend on factors like repairs and if the ship needs to be dry docked and unloaded, he said.

"Our hope is that it resolves quickly," he said. "Obviously we're thinking about the individual crew members of the ship, and our promise to the City of Toronto that Daily Bread will continue to be there for them."

Food bank users in Toronto should not feel the effects of what's happening behind the scenes, he added, because the organization is purchasing from multiple countries.

It has only been a couple of years since Daily Bread started bringing in international shipments of food, Hetherington said, which began so the organization could diversify its supply chain network. Daily Bread still purchases primarily from local farmers wherever possible, he said.

"The food supply in Canada, much of it comes internationally — that's just a reality of our climate," he said. "And so there are things like rice, like beans, that are coming from international sources."

Daily bread is the umbrella food bank for Toronto, which supplies around 200 food banks around the city.