Supermarkets across Europe have been forced to throw away thousands of pounds worth of food after hackers took control of their refrigeration systems, sending temperatures soaring to as high as 50C.

More than 100 stores across at least seven countries were affected by the suspected cyberattacks on Monday, including branches of Carrefour, SuperValu, ICA, Coop, Delhaize and Ikea.

The disruption saw hackers remotely interfere with refrigeration controls, in some cases activating defrost settings and leaving chilled and frozen products unsellable.

In Sweden, staff at an ICA supermarket in Stockholm discovered their freezers had reached 50C after an attack reportedly took place at around 2am.

“Everything is destroyed,” sales manager Engla Ingwall told Reuters.

Irish supermarket chain SuperValu confirmed that 13 of its 223 stores had been affected by an incident involving a specific model of refrigeration system, with chilled and frozen products removed from sale.

In Belgium, Carrefour reported problems at 15 of its 700 stores, while Ahold Delhaize said dozens of its supermarkets across Belgium and Luxembourg had been affected by an IT incident.

Five Spar stores operated by Colruyt Group also reported refrigeration failures, alongside several Intermarché locations.

Ikea confirmed that its store in Mons, Belgium, had been affected, forcing it to remove some food products as a precaution.

The financial consequences have been immediate for some businesses. Luc De Laet, owner of Belgian butchery chain De Laet & Van Haver, told Sky News he had lost around £12,500 worth of meat after the temperature in his store’s refrigerators rose to 18C.

The incidents follow a similar attack in France last month, when hackers interfered with refrigeration systems at hundreds of supermarkets, including stores operated by Intermarché, Carrefour, Leclerc and Monoprix.

The French attack affected as many as 700 stores, leaving retailers with substantial food losses and prompting a criminal investigation.

Cybersecurity concerns grow

The latest incidents have raised questions about the security of internet-connected refrigeration equipment, which allows retailers to monitor and adjust temperatures remotely.

Danish engineering firm Danfoss, whose refrigeration controllers were among those targeted in France, has previously advised customers to install security updates and strengthen network protections.

Stephan Moelans, chief executive of Belgian refrigeration company Sabcobel, confirmed that the latest disruption involved hackers remotely switching refrigeration units into defrost mode.

The company mobilised technicians overnight to disconnect affected systems and prevent further damage.

Cybersecurity experts have warned that older refrigeration controllers connected directly to the internet can leave retailers vulnerable to attacks capable of destroying perishable stock within hours.

The European Union’s food and agriculture commissioner, Christophe Hansen, condemned the incidents as a deliberate attempt to interfere with Europe’s food supply chain and damage consumer confidence.

Belgium’s prosecutor’s office has opened a criminal investigation, while Sweden’s national cybersecurity centre is responding to incidents affecting retailers across the country.

No group has claimed responsibility, and authorities have not established whether the latest attacks and those in France were carried out by the same perpetrators.

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