A grocery app can hold a surprising amount of dinner: the list, the order and the ingredients you’re counting on for tonight.
In an October 13 update, Ahold Delhaize said it was beginning a controlled restart of certain systems after taking some offline because of a cybersecurity incident. The company said its stores across Europe and the United States remained open, and the disruption differed by brand.
Its U.S. brands include Food Lion, The GIANT Company, Giant Food, Hannaford and Stop & Shop. Check the notice from your own grocer rather than assuming every app or service is affected in the same way.
The company also said it had no evidence at that point that customer or associate data had been taken. Its investigation was continuing.
Give tonight a small backup
If you shop with one of these grocers, check your retailer’s own notice and the status of any order you’ve already placed. If the status is unclear, contact the store before placing a replacement order.
Then take five minutes for the part you can control:
Write down tonight’s meal and the ingredients you still need. Keep the list on paper or somewhere you can open without the grocery app.
Check the fridge, freezer and pantry before making another shopping plan.
Choose one familiar fallback that uses what you already have. Pasta with beans and vegetables, eggs on toast, or a freezer meal could fit, depending on your household.
Leave tomorrow’s decisions for tomorrow if tonight is the only gap.
You don’t need a second plan for the whole week. One workable dinner is enough to make an uncertain shopping day easier.
Keep the meal and its essentials somewhere everyone cooking can find them. That habit is useful even when every app is working.
If someone else handles tonight’s shopping, share this checklist with them.