By Zac de Silva in Canberra

A snap assessment of Australia’s grocery supply chains will investigate how the Middle East war is impacting the way food is grown and transported around the nation.

As the prime minister phones his Asian counterparts to try and shore up fuel stocks, the government has brought together business leaders from the agriculture sector and leading supply chain experts to discuss the ripple effects of the oil crisis gripping the world.

An initial investigation into the effects of high diesel prices will be handed down within one month.

A broader report on other critical agricultural products including fertiliser and pesticides will be delivered by the end of the year.

The war in the Middle East was a timely reminder not to be complacent about Australia’s supply chains, Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said.

“While Australia is food secure, we recognise the importance of supply chain resilience, including the supply of fuel and fertiliser, which is why we have commissioned this assessment,” she said in a statement.

Logistics companies responsible for transporting much of Australia’s food from farm to store have previously warned high diesel prices are heaping pressure on an already-stressed sector.

Australia is heavily reliant on fuel imports, bringing much of it in from South Korea and Singapore, which in turn rely on oil from the Middle East.

Anthony Albanese was working the phones to ensure Australia’s imports were not forgotten in the global rush for oil, Assistant Foreign Minister Matt Thistlethwaite said.

“The prime minister’s negotiating with our Asian neighbours and counterparts to try and maximise the amount of fuel that is available in Australia,” he told Sky News on Monday.

Mr Thistlethwaite suggested Australia could leverage its natural gas exports to incentivise countries such as South Korea to continue sending fuel.

The International Energy Agency has recommended encouraging people to work from home in a bid to reduce demand for petrol, a move the government described as “sensible”.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen also revealed six tankers bound for Australia had their journeys cancelled or postponed because of the war in the Middle East.

Fuel companies had increased their imports from the United States in response, Labor minister Mark Butler said on Monday.

“We’re seeing, as I understand it, an increase in shipments from the US that we haven’t seen for many, many years,” he told Nine’s Today program.

“The companies, but also the government, (are) working very hard to make sure that we can get supplies from wherever possible.”

Stronger supply chains were the solution to the fuel crisis, deputy opposition leader Jane Hume said.

“The way to deal with the crisis we’re facing now is to address those distribution channels and to make sure that we have the supply chains in place to deliver fuel where it’s needed,” she told ABC TV.

“Without that, the economy simply runs to a stop.”