Shops across the UK could run out of hummus later this year as the supply of chickpeas - the key ingredient - faces a global shortage. Supplies of the legume, also used to make falafel, could drop by as much as 20% this year according to the Global Pulse Confederation.
Both Russia and Ukraine were major exporters of chickpeas before the war. The loss of the Ukraine crop totals a shortfall of 50,000 tonnes destined for the European market, according to Navneet Singh Chhabra, director of Shree Sheela International, a global chickpea trader.
A quarter of the world's chickpea supply comes from Russia - which is now being hit by global trade sanctions. That means the world has lost another 200,000 to 250,000 tonnes of chickpeas this year according to Jeff Van Pevenage, chief executive officer of Columbia Grain International.
In the USA, the world's fourth-largest chickpea exporter, farmers planted a smaller crop this year because of the weather. In Australia crops have been destroyed by floods.
Distribution problems across the world have also restricted supply and driven up costs. Chickpeas are also used to make flour, soups, stews and curries.
