Middle East Airport Closures Disrupt Japanese Matcha Exports

Middle East Airport Closures Now Affecting Japanese Matcha Exports

In early March 2026, military attacks on Iran triggered rising tensions across the Middle East, leading to the temporary closure of several international airports in the region. These closures have caused widespread flight cancellations, and the impact is now being felt by Japanese matcha exporters.

Matcha Shipment to Dubai Stuck at Narita Airport

A seicha (製茶) company — a tea processor that takes raw tea leaves and finishes them into market-ready products such as matcha — based in Shizuoka, one of Japan's leading tea-producing regions, has been exporting matcha to Dubai, UAE, and other Middle Eastern markets for the past three years. Demand had been growing steadily, driven by a matcha boom in local cafés and specialty beverage shops. However, a recent shipment destined for Dubai has been stopped at Narita International Airport due to the regional airport closures. With no clear timeline for when flights will resume, the company has decided to retrieve the stranded cargo rather than wait for a re-export opportunity.

Rerouting Shipments and Looking Ahead

Adding to the difficulty, many of the company's café and restaurant clients in the Middle East have temporarily suspended operations, further reducing near-term demand. In response, the Shizuoka exporter is now redirecting matcha products originally planned for the Middle East to alternative markets in Southeast Asia. The company's president expressed concern that the disruption will not be limited to tea, warning that prolonged instability in the Middle East could affect a wide range of Japanese export goods. "All we can do is hope this doesn't drag on," he said. For U.S. cafés and buyers who source Japanese matcha, this situation is a reminder that global supply chains for specialty ingredients can be affected quickly by geopolitical events — even in distant regions. Staying in close contact with your Japanese suppliers and maintaining a reasonable safety stock of core matcha products can help keep your operations running smoothly during unexpected disruptions.

Source (Japanese-language article):
交流・ビジネスに暗い影　講演会中止、抹茶輸出できず　「残念」「祈るしか」・イラン攻撃1週間（時事通信） – Yahoo!ニュース