One of the largest grocery distributors in the United States, United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI), recently announced that it has voluntarily shut down some systems due to the discovery of unauthorized activities in its internal network, resulting in operational disruptions. The company’s clients include Whole Foods, and the incident has affected its order processing and distribution capabilities. Whole Foods Market said it is making efforts to restock, but did not disclose the specific extent of the impact. UNFI said in a document submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that the disruption began on June 5 and is expected to last for some time.
This incident led to a nearly 7% plunge in UNFI’s share price on Monday, closing at $25.94. Although the company did not explicitly state the nature of the incident, analysts speculate that it might involve a ransomware attack. Recently, many retailers in the UK and the US, such as Marks & Spencer and Victoria’s Secret, have also encountered similar online incidents. UNFI is the largest health food wholesaler in North America. In 2024, it renewed an eight-year distribution agreement with Whole Foods, a subsidiary of Amazon.
As of February 2025, UNFI reported quarterly net sales of 8.2 billion US dollars. At present, the FBI has not commented on this matter. The incident highlights the intensification of supply chain cybersecurity risks, which may further affect retailers’ inventories and supply chain stability.
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