United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI) is a leading distributor to more than 30,000 retailers. In June 2025, UNFI discovered a cyberattack interrupting its core distribution systems. While UNFI worked quickly to safely restore its network, the attack highlights vulnerabilities to supply chain disruptions.  Here’s a summary of what happened in the UNFI cyberattack and how a similar incident could impact your business operations, financials, and reputation.

UNFI’s cyberattack disrupted supply chains, caused inventory shortages, and led to higher costs and lost sales. The incident highlighted the vulnerability of critical infrastructure and the need for robust cybersecurity, employee training, and business continuity plans. TenHats can help safeguard your business with proactive monitoring, rapid response, and expert support for lasting resilience.

What Happened During the UNFI Cyberattack?

United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI) is the largest publicly traded wholesale food distributor in North America and the primary supplier to Whole Foods. On June 5, 2025, they detected unauthorized activity on their IT systems. 

In response, UNFI immediately took critical systems offline to contain the breach, which impacted: 

• Warehouse management 
• Transportation 
• Order management systems 

The attack led to significant operational disruptions, including delays in deliveries, canceled employee shifts, and empty store shelves across thousands of grocery locations. 

UNFI has not disclosed the exact nature of the attack or the threat actor involved, and no ransomware group has claimed responsibility. However, the cyber outage affected over 30,000 locations and took 10 days to restore, forcing them to implement workarounds to continue limited distribution. 

How UNFI Responded

UNFI responded to the cyberattack by immediately activating its incident response plan and taking affected systems offline to contain the breach. To maintain limited operations, the company implemented manual workarounds and used manual processes to fulfill orders where possible, though disruptions persisted for several weeks. 

UNFI brought in external cybersecurity experts to investigate and remediate the incident and notified law enforcement. Throughout the crisis, they communicated with stakeholders, filing reports with the SEC and regularly updating customers and suppliers on their progress. By late June, UNFI had restored its core systems and resumed normal operations. 

How the Industry Has Reacted

Industry observers have noted the significant impact of the UNFI cyberattack on the food supply chain, noting that delayed deliveries and inventory shortages affected: 

• Retailers 
• Suppliers 
• Consumers 

The attack emphasized the growing trend of cybercriminals targeting the food and agriculture sector for financial gain and operational disruption. Some UNFI customers quickly sought alternative suppliers to reduce disruptions, exposing the vulnerability of supply chains to cyberthreats. 

The incident caused a temporary decline in UNFI’s stock price and heightened concerns about digital risks facing critical infrastructure sectors like food distribution. In response, regulatory bodies such as the Food and Ag-ISAC updated cybersecurity guidance for food and agriculture businesses. 

What Can Your Business Do? 

To protect your business from cyberattacks like those experienced by UNFI, start by assessing and strengthening your cybersecurity posture. This is accomplished by performing regular risk assessments and vulnerability scans. 

Implementing robust incident response and business continuity plans is another important step. This includes manual workarounds for critical operations to ensure resilience during disruptions. 

You should also educate employees on cybersecurity best practices, such as recognizing phishing attempts and maintaining secure password management, since staff are often the first line of defense against attacks. Regularly update and patch all software and systems to close security gaps that hackers might exploit. 

Finally, leverage updated industry resources for practical, cost-effective steps tailored for small and medium-sized enterprises to bolster defenses against evolving threats.

How Working with an IT MSP Can Help 

Working with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) can significantly improve your business’s cybersecurity. To help minimize downtime and prevent data loss during cyber incidents, MSPs offer: 

• Proactive monitoring 
• Advanced threat detection 
• Rapid incident response 

MSPs assist in implementing layered security measures—such as firewalls, endpoint protection, and secure backups—tailored to your industry’s specific risks. They may also provide ongoing employee training and ensure that all systems are regularly updated and patched, reducing vulnerabilities that attackers might exploit. 

In the event of a breach, MSPs coordinate containment, remediation, and recovery, so your team can stay focused on core operations. For small and medium-sized businesses, partnering with an MSP provides affordable access to expert cybersecurity resources, greatly enhancing resilience against evolving threats.

Choose TenHats as Your Knoxville Cybersecurity Partner

TenHats helps protect your business against cyberthreats by delivering comprehensive managed cybersecurity services tailored to your needs. Our dedicated security operations center provides real-time monitoring, threat detection, and rapid response to stop attacks before they disrupt your operations. 

We implement advanced security measures that have been customized to address your organization’s unique risks, including: 

• Endpoint detection and response 
• Security information and event management 
• Multi-factor authentication 

We also offer security awareness training to educate your team on recognizing threats like phishing and social engineering, and ensure your systems stay compliant with industry regulations. 

With TenHats, you gain continuous protection, expert guidance, and peace of mind so you can focus on running your business.