United Natural Foods hit hard, causing delays and $400M losses in critical food distribution
July 2025
United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI) a major food distributor and Whole Foods Market’s primary supplier confirmed that a June 2025 cyberattack forced it to shut down core systems, resulting in lost sales of up to $400 million and an estimated net income hit of up to $60 million.
Incident Timeline
- June 5: Cyberattack discovered.
- June 9: Public disclosure.
- June 16: Primary electronic ordering systems restored.
- June 26: Core systems and distribution network operations largely normalized.
Attack Details
While no ransom was publicly discussed, the attack has been linked to the Scattered Spider group known for high-impact attacks on retail, insurance, and aviation sectors.
To mitigate damage, UNFI shut down its entire network, operating manually for days across 52 distribution centers that typically serve 30,000 customer locations and move 250,000 products from 11,000+ suppliers.
Business Impact
- Sales Loss: Up to $400M, primarily from unfulfilled orders and product spoilage.
- Net Income Loss: Up to $60M for the current quarter.
- Manual Operations Cost: Approx. $20M.
- Recovery & Legal/Expert Costs: $5M, covering third-party cybersecurity, legal, and governance services.
Recovery Status
UNFI says it has now returned to normalized operating capacity, with fill rates, deliveries, and units shipped back to or near pre-incident levels. Some non-critical systems, such as reporting tools, are still being restored.
CEO Sandy Douglas emphasized the broader supply chain impact:
“We never want to be the reason a local grocer is out of stock on a product their shoppers count on.”
Insurance Coverage
UNFI expects to recover remediation costs through its cyber insurance, though reimbursement may arrive in Fiscal year 2026, which starts in August.
The threat is real. The fix is ready. Act now, stay safe.
praveen@finstein.ai | https://cyber.finstein.ai/
Source : United Natural Foods loses up to $400M in sales after cyberattack | CyberScoop
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