Cyberattack Could Lead To Some Shortages At ND Grocery Stores

A cyberattack on UNFI, which is a food distributor that serves numerous grocery stores in North Dakota, could leave some supermarkets in short supply.

How many grocery stores in North Dakota are supplied by UNFI?

According to an article on KVRR, the North Dakota Grocers Association says as many as 60 out of the 138 grocery stores in the state are supplied by UNFI.

It was reported that UNFI had "unauthorized activity" on its IT systems, and that deliveries to some of its supermarkets will be affected.

The article went on to say that some grocery stores in the state will be struggling with the cyberattack as they will now have to try to fill orders in the next few weeks.

Will our grocery stores in the Bismarck/Mandan metro be affected?

It's likely to mostly affect rural grocery stores the most, which are already struggling to stay open, and will likely be hit the hardest. Larger cities will be getting orders fulfilled first.

I spoke with Brad Christensen from Cash Wise grocery store in south Bismarck, and he confirmed that grocery stores in places like New Salem, Washburn, and smaller towns are likely to be affected the most.

Christensen went on to say, "Cash Wise grocery stores in Bismarck will not be affected since they are not supplied by UNFI." Apparently, this cyberattack took place last Friday night.

The same goes for Family Fare Supermarket in Bismarck and Mandan. I spoke with a manager from the store who confirmed they will also not be impacted.

How long will this interruption impact our North Dakota grocery stores?

There was no timetable mentioned, but one of the managers I spoke to thought it could be several weeks of shortages for milk and other perishable products.