Cyberattack Disrupts UNFI Operations, Potential Impact on Cub and Whole Foods Stores in Minnesota

TWIN CITIES, MINNESOTA: United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI), a major grocery distributor serving over 30,000 retail locations across the U.S. and Canada, has been hit by a significant cyberattack that has disrupted its ability to fulfill and distribute customer orders — a development that could directly impact grocery store operations in Minnesota, including the Twin Cities metro.

In a regulatory filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, UNFI disclosed that it detected unauthorized activity on its Information Technology (IT) systems on Thursday, June 5. In response, the company swiftly activated its incident response plan, took parts of its network offline, and engaged third-party cybersecurity experts to contain and investigate the breach. Law enforcement has also been notified.

"The incident has caused, and is expected to continue to cause, temporary disruptions to the Company’s business operations," UNFI stated in the SEC filing. While workarounds are in place to maintain service where possible, the company acknowledged that order fulfillment and distribution are currently being impacted.

Pharmacy Services Disrupted

We were informed by someone with knowledge of local operations that the outage is directly affecting customers through Cub’s in-store pharmacies, which are currently unable to access their prescription systems due to their dependence on UNFI-hosted servers.

“Patients are coming in for prescriptions, and the staff can’t get into the system to fulfill them,” the source said. “All functions tied to the UNFI server are shut down.”

This has created growing frustration among pharmacy customers and added pressure on store personnel, who are reportedly unable to view, fill, or manage prescriptions while the system remains offline.

Point of Sale Still Functional

Despite the disruption, Cub’s point-of-sale systems remain operational, as the source confirmed that local stores operate those systems through an independent server not linked to UNFI’s central network. This means customers can still shop and check out as usual, and general store operations — aside from those tied to the pharmacy or distribution systems — remain largely intact for now.

UNFI’s Broader Supply Chain Still Recovering

The breach comes at a critical time for the grocery industry and could still have wide-reaching effects. UNFI, based in Providence, Rhode Island, owns Cub and operates a vast logistics network encompassing over 31 million square feet of warehouse space and serving 30,000 customer locations. The company services major chains such as Whole Foods and a wide array of independent grocers across the U.S. and Canada.

While the company has not specified the type of cyberattack or whether any sensitive data was compromised, the incident has forced them to shut down systems and switch to manual or backup procedures where possible.

UNFI emphasized it is "working closely with customers, suppliers, and associates to minimize disruption as much as possible," and that it continues to assess and remediate the issue with the assistance of external cybersecurity professionals.

What Minnesota Shoppers Should Know

  • Pharmacy Delays: Customers may experience disruptions to prescription services at Cub locations until the affected systems are restored.

  • Shopping Continues: Groceries and general merchandise are still being sold, as point-of-sale systems remain unaffected.

  • No Data Breach Confirmed: As of now, there is no indication of customer data exposure, but the investigation is ongoing.

As UNFI works to bring systems back online, grocery store operations — especially critical pharmacy services — remain under strain. The full impact of the cyberattack is still unfolding and could continue to affect Minnesota consumers in the days ahead.

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE: UNFI), based in Providence, Rhode Island, is one of North America's largest grocery distributors, supplying natural, organic, and conventional products to a vast network of retailers, including Whole Foods, Cub, and independent grocers.

Written by: Will Wight
Photo by Alexandru Tugui on Unsplash



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