NichiRei Co., Ltd. has fully restored its frozen-food shipment and logistics operations after a cyberattack disrupted its systems [1].
The recovery marks the end of a significant disruption to one of Japan's primary frozen-food supply chains. Because the company manages extensive domestic distribution, the outage threatened the availability of essential food products across multiple regions.
The system outage began July 13 [1]. In response to the attack, NichiRei imposed restrictions on order placement and dispatch across its network to manage the crisis and protect its infrastructure [1]. These limitations affected all of the company's domestic sites and distribution centers throughout Japan [1].
Company officials announced the full recovery July 24 [1]. The restoration follows efforts by the company to mitigate the effects of the cyberattack and stabilize its digital operations [1]. With the systems now back online, the company has lifted all previously imposed restrictions on order placement and dispatch at every site [1].
NichiRei is a major producer in the Japanese frozen-food market, relying on a complex network of cold-chain logistics to move products from production to retail. The 11-day window between the initial outage and full restoration required the company to navigate a total system failure while attempting to maintain food safety and delivery schedules.
While the company has confirmed that operations are now normal, the incident highlights the vulnerability of critical food infrastructure to digital disruptions. The company said the restrictions were necessary to ensure a controlled recovery of the logistics network [1].
“All frozen‑food shipment and logistics operations have been fully restored.”
The disruption of NichiRei's logistics underscores the systemic risk that cyberattacks pose to 'just-in-time' food supply chains. Because frozen-food logistics require strict temperature controls and precise timing, a digital outage does not just stop data flow but can physically jeopardize inventory. The restoration of these services prevents longer-term shortages in the Japanese retail market.
