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Cyberattack Disrupts United Natural Foods’ Operations, Triggers 8% Share Plunge

Taking key systems offline to investigate the breach, the distributor is relying on workarounds to keep orders moving.

Produce displayed for sale a Whole Foods Market Daily Shop ahead of opening in the Upper East Side neighborhood of New York, US, on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. Whole Foods Market is opening new small-format stores aimed at serving quick-trip urban consumers, with its first set to open on Sept. 18 in New York. Photographer: Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg
A Whole Foods grocery store in New York City.
An employee stocks the shelves with fresh peppers in the produce section at Whole Foods in Dublin, Ohio on Friday, November 7, 2014.
Avocados from Mexico are displayed for sale at a Whole Foods store on Feb. 3, 2025 in New York City.

Overview

  • UNFI discovered a cyberattack on June 5 and proactively shut down affected systems to contain unauthorized activity.
  • The outage has disrupted deliveries to more than 30,000 retailers, causing empty and delayed replenishments at stores such as Whole Foods.
  • UNFI has notified law enforcement and hired third-party cybersecurity experts under its incident response plan.
  • The company is using interim workarounds to fulfill orders, but the full scope of the breach and potential data loss remains unclear.
  • UNFI’s shares fell over 8% following the disclosure as it continues efforts to restore its IT systems.