Small petrol stations are shutting down their pumps as fuel prices skyrocket to £2 per litre, while the global food supply chain faces significant threats due to the ongoing conflict in Iran.

As the tension between Tehran, the United States, and Israel entered its second month on Saturday, both consumers and businesses are grappling with the rising cost of fuel.

Across Britain, long lines are forming at petrol stations, exacerbated by temporary supply disruptions in some regions. These issues arose after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, a critical passage through which 20% of the world’s oil supply typically flows each year.

The conflict showed no signs of slowing down on Saturday, as Houthi rebels in Yemen joined the fray with a ballistic missile attack aimed at Israel.

This escalation raises fears that prices could climb even higher if the Houthis resume their attacks on shipping routes in the Red Sea.

This week, some small petrol station proprietors opted to close rather than charge customers the exorbitant price of £2 per litre. Even major supermarkets faced shortages, leading to pump closures as supplies dwindled.

Today average petrol prices hi 150.11p per litre, while diesel rose again to 177.68p. 

It comes after the government came under fire for suggesting that forecourts were ‘profiteering’ from the crisis – something station owners have strongly denied and have have blamed for an uptick in abuse of their staff.

As the conflict between Tehran and the US and Israel entered its second month on Saturday, consumers and businesses are feeling the pinch of spiralling fuel prices

Queues at a branch of CostCo in Gateshead on Friday as customers rushed to take advantage of its cheaper fuel prices

Small petrol station owners such as Mollie Ellis (pictured) have closed their pumps due to the price rise

Mollie Ellis, who runs her family business Youlgrave Garage in the Derbyshire Dales, told how she shut the pumps two weeks ago after refusing to pass on higher prices to her customers.

Ms Ellis told the Times she was faced with charging customers 180p per litre of petrol and 200p per litre of diesel – something she was not prepared to do. 

She stopped selling fuel on March 13, not wanting to face allegations of profiteering from angry customers or buy fuel at a loss that she couldn’t then sell. 

‘We can’t afford to take that hit. We’re a one-mechanic garage,’ she said. ‘I don’t want to be at a point where I’m being seen to rip customers off and people think that we’re profiteering, because a lot of colleagues in the industry are getting so much abuse.’ 

Beth Ballard, who runs a forecourt at H Ballard & Son car showroom in Welshpool, stopped selling petrol on March 19. 

The last straw for her was being quoted a wholesale price of more than 150p per litre before any tax or operating costs, while her competitors’ prices were below 140p.

She said: ‘We are normally praised for being the cheapest in Welshpool, so it was just a big fat no. We’re not going to do that.’

Independent fuel stations are more likely to have fuel purchase agreements which see them buy based on the previous week’s, or even day’s, prices, than rivals such as large supermarkets.

This means they are more vulnerable to market volatility and tend be the first to have to pass on large price rises to customers. 

The Daily Mail visited several petrol stations in the north of England this week, where motorists hit out at the Government over the rising cost of fuel.

At CostCo in Gateshead, petrol was being sold for 137.9 while diesel was 160.9 – the cheapest in the area

Michael Hall, a 73-year-old retired electrician from Kingston Park, Newcastle, refills his car’s tank in Gateshead on Friday

At CostCo in Gateshead, petrol was being sold for 137.9 while diesel was 160.9 – the cheapest in the area. 

Queues stretched out of the forecourt as desperate drivers scrambled to fill their cars before further hikes.

Joanne Bolam, a 49-year-old support worker from Kingston Park, Newcastle, said: ‘The Government should be bringing the cost down.

‘I fill my tank up about once a month, but the price is absolutely ridiculous. I usually go to Tesco in Kingston Park, but they’ve run out, so I’ve come here.

‘The Government need to act, because there’s going to be a knock on effect.’

David Allen, a 71-year-old retired oil and gas engineer from Lemington, Newcastle, said: ‘The Government need to make their mind up and do something about this.

‘I don’t think reducing fuel duty is the answer. When it comes down to it, I don’t feel like it makes much of a difference. It’s the same when they cut the tax on beer. You never really notice it.

‘The price of fuel varies wildly from petrol station to petrol station. Just joining CostCo to become a member makes more of a difference than bringing down fuel duty by a few pence.

‘We are a two car family. During the week, my wife uses this for work, and at the weekend we always try and go on a trip somewhere.

‘The rising price of petrol will not just affect travel, it will affect everything that travels by road. If you want to get a taxi somewhere, that will be more expensive as well.’

David’s wife, Bev Holmes, a 61-year-old admin worker, of Lemington, Newcastle, added: ‘I do about 28 miles a day, commuting to work.

‘I’ve already said I am going to work from home one day a week, to save money. I’m lucky I have that option, not everyone does.

David Holmes, 71, and his wife Bev, 61, filling up their vehicle – Bev has decided to begin working from home once a week to save on fuel

Joanne Bolam, a 49-year-old support worker from Kingston Park, Newcastle, said the government ‘needs to act’ to protect families

‘But more people working from home will have a knock on effect on the economy. It’s going to impact so many things.’

Michael Hall is a 73-year-old retired electrician from Kingston Park, Newcastle.

He said: ‘The Government should be helping us out, as far as I am concerned. If they don’t help businesses out, they could be forced to close.

‘When the price of fuel goes up, everything goes up. The Government will be making more money from the VAT. They won’t bring it down, but they should.

‘There should be measures to do this in a crisis.’

Chris Walton, a 34-year-old HGV driver, of Throckley, Newcastle, said: ‘Everything is so expensive as it is.

‘This is just one more thing on top of the pile. It always hits the working people the hardest. It’s never the politicians.

‘The Government should bring fuel duty down. People are struggling in so many ways, because they can’t afford the cost of living.

‘I have to drive a lot of miles for my job, around 40 a day. It’s difficult to estimate just how much it’s going to cost me yet. Luckily I don’t have to pay for the HGV fuel, but this could affect my work.

‘Everything is going to be so much more expensive.’

At nearby Esso Garage PNG Fuel & Foods in Blaydon, petrol was 154.9p and diesel 183.9p per litre.

Rachael Grant is a 40-year-old florist who runs business Jasmine and Pear,  in Gateshead.

She said: ‘It’s a massive expense, especially for someone like me, who runs a small business. If there’s anything at all the Government can do, it would be a big help.

‘It’s expensive at this petrol station, and I usually shop around, but I am rushing to pick the kids up from school.

‘I travel to wedding venues all over Northumberland, so I do a lot of miles.

‘If I can’t make money out of wedding flowers, what do I do?

‘The Government will be making more money out of the VAT, and I don’t think they should be.

‘When there are wars going on in the world, there should be interim measures to mitigate the damage in the short term.’

It’s not just fuel that is suffering price rises as a result of the conflict. Fertilizer costs are also climbing due to supply chain disruption, which could push up costs and disrupt food distribution around the world.

Stocks of fertilizer are building up in the Middle East but are unable to be exported efficiently due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Usually, nearly a third of all global fertilizer passes through the strait each year.

Even countries that produce their own stocks outside of the Middle East are struggling as they require natural gas to do so – which is facing similar price hikes to oil as the region is a hub for its production. 

And in countries including Slovakia, India and Algeria, fertilizer plants have had to stop or slow production due to the increased price of natural gas. 

Experts have warned it is ‘inevitable’ food prices will go up as a result of the crisis.