China urged to release food and fertilizer stockpiles to ease global crisis

China should immediately halt the build-up of its massive stockpiles of food and fertiliser to help stabilise global supplies disrupted by the ongoing Iran conflict, former World Bank President David Malpass has said.
Malpass, who led the World Bank from 2019 to 2023 and previously served as a senior Treasury official under President Donald Trump, made the call ahead of this week’s summit in Beijing between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“They have the biggest world stockpile of foodstuffs and of fertiliser,” Malpass told the BBC. “They can stop building their stockpiles.”
The comments come as nations scramble to secure fertiliser ahead of the critical spring planting season. The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has severely disrupted global shipping, energy, and petrochemical supplies, exacerbating existing pressures on food production.
Earlier this month, Yara International CEO Svein Tore Holsether warned that the fertiliser shortage could result in the loss of up to 10 billion meals per week globally, with the poorest countries expected to suffer the most. Reduced crop yields could trigger fierce competition for available food supplies.
China, which accounted for roughly 25% of global fertiliser output last year and exported more than $13 billion worth, has restricted exports of several types since March, citing domestic needs. The curbs build on restrictions first introduced in 2021.
Malpass also challenged China’s continued classification as a developing country in international organisations.
“They present themselves as a developing country when they’re the second biggest economy in the world and in many ways rich,” he said. “They could suspend that [status]” in the WTO and World Bank.
In response, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, rejected the criticism.
“China is committed to maintaining the stability of global food and fertilizer markets,” Liu said in a statement. “The root causes behind the current disruptions in global food and fertilizer supply chains are crystal clear; this blame cannot be shifted onto China.”
On China’s developing nation status, Liu added: “China is universally recognized as the largest developing country — a designation grounded in ample factual evidence.”
Malpass expressed hope that China would help resolve the deadlock in the Strait of Hormuz, noting that Beijing has a strong economic interest in open sea lanes.
“China benefits from open waterways worldwide. They run the shipping lines, own the containers, and make huge profit from trade with the rest of the world,” he said. “So, they would be a big loser if Iran in some way had control of the Strait of Hormuz.”
He also urged the international community to support U.S. efforts to secure a resolution to the Iran crisis, describing a nuclear-armed rogue state controlling a vital chokepoint as unacceptable.
On the U.S. domestic front, Malpass said he expects higher prices for many products in the coming months, though he described the American economy as resilient on the back of strong jobs data.
The Trump-Xi summit is being closely watched for its potential to shape U.S.-China relations and address pressing global trade and security issues.