United Natural Foods (UNFI), a critical supplier serving major grocers across the United States and Canada, announced Monday that its IT systems had suffered a cyberattack, causing disruptions to the company’s customer fulfillment and distribution processes.
In a disclosure filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company revealed it had detected the unauthorized network access late last week and promptly took affected systems offline. Since that initial discovery on Thursday, UNFI has been working to deploy temporary solutions that allow limited continuation of its business operations. However, ongoing challenges from the incident have significantly hindered its regular supply chain functions.
Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, UNFI is one of North America’s largest grocery wholesalers, servicing over 30,000 grocery stores and supermarkets. This includes a longstanding partnership as the primary distributor of fresh produce and other goods for Whole Foods, which extended its distributor contract with UNFI last year through at least May 2032.
Representatives from UNFI declined to specify the exact scope or type of cyberattack the company experienced, and did not confirm whether ransom demands were made. Spokesperson Kristen Jimenez stated only that the company was actively assessing the situation and making every effort to restore systems safely, adding that law enforcement authorities have been informed.
Whole Foods did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the matter.
This cyber incident at UNFI adds to a rising number of recent attacks targeting major retail and grocery supply chains. Earlier this year, prominent British retailers Marks & Spencer and Co-op both suffered severe data breaches that disrupted store operations and compromised customer data. Following these events, cybersecurity experts, including teams from Google, have cautioned that attackers may increasingly focus on the U.S. retail sector, expanding the risk for businesses and consumers alike.
At present, UNFI has not provided a clear estimate for when its systems might fully recover or operations return to normal.
