---
title: "Empty shelves are not a threat: experts explain what strikes on retailers' warehouses mean for prices and delivery times"
description: "RBC-Ukraine experts explained that after the strikes on retailers' warehouses there will be no physical shortage, but delivery could take up to a week, and prices on basic products will rise due to logistics."
date: 2026-08-29T10:58:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/strikes-on-retailer-warehouses-logistics-and-prices
tags: [ukraine-retail, logistics, food-supply, russia-attacks, prices, supermarkets]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Empty shelves are not a threat: experts explain what strikes on retailers' warehouses mean for prices and delivery times

![Empty supermarket shelves: product shortages amid strikes on retailers' warehouses](https://xab.info/media/2026/08/29/udary-po-skladam-ritejla-logistika-i-ceny/udary-po-skladam-ritejla-logistika-i-ceny-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- In Kyiv and the oblast, around 400,000 sq. m of warehouse space has been taken out of service — nearly 30% of the region's distribution capacity.
- There is no physical food shortage: production exceeds consumption, and the problem lies in logistics and delivery times of up to a week.
- The most vulnerable are goods with a short shelf life and a cold chain: milk, chilled meat, fish, and fresh vegetables.
- Prices will rise moderately due to costs for logistics, fuel and electricity, not because of a lack of goods.
- Consumers are advised not to stockpile food in bulk and to limit purchases to a stockpile of at most two weeks.

Massive Russian attacks on the logistics hubs and distribution centers of major retail chains in Kyiv, Dnipro, Kharkiv and Odesa have triggered a wave of anxious discussion about a possible food shortage in stores. To separate real risks from panic, leading analysts — Maksym Hopska, head of the analytical department of UKAB; Denas Marchuk, deputy chair of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council; Arsen Didur, executive director of the "Union of Dairy Enterprises of Ukraine" association; and Alexander Taranenko, first vice-president of the All-Ukrainian Association of Bakers — assessed the current situation: from the scale of the destruction to the outlook for price tags on basic goods.

### Scale of the destruction: nearly a third of Kyiv's warehouse space

According to expert estimates, the strikes have taken significant areas of distribution centers out of service. The most affected region was Kyiv and the Kyiv Oblast, where around 400,000 sq. m of warehouse space was damaged — almost 30% of such capacity in the region. Similar damage has been recorded in Dnipro, Kharkiv and Odesa. These hubs were responsible for the rapid processing and dispatch of goods to store networks, so their partial shutdown immediately affected the speed at which shelves are restocked.

### Logistics, not shortage: why the shelves will not empty

The key conclusion of the experts is that there is no physical food shortage in Ukraine and none is expected. Domestic production substantially exceeds consumption, and the structure of agricultural production is such that basic needs are met in every region independently of the central hubs. The main difficulties are not about the absence of goods, but about logistics and the restoration of supply chains: delivery that previously took 24–72 hours could stretch to a week due to the destruction of the major centers. In response, retail chains and producers are switching to direct deliveries, bypassing the disabled distribution nodes.

### Vulnerable categories: what will disappear first

Temporary disruptions and the pinpoint disappearance of individual brands mainly affect goods with a short shelf life that depend on a continuous cold chain: dairy products, chilled meat and fish, and fresh vegetables. These are the most sensitive to delays in transportation. Mass-market bread varieties, by contrast, are less affected, as they are predominantly delivered by factories directly to stores, without relying on large distribution centers. Photographs from stores already show partially empty rows in the grains and groceries segment, clearly illustrating the transitional nature of the disruptions.

### Price forecast: increases driven by logistics, not by scarcity

Experts forecast a moderate rise in prices, driven primarily by additional costs for logistics, fuel and electricity — including running generators to maintain cold chains — rather than by a lack of goods. In other words, the price increase is cost-driven: it is delivery and storage that become more expensive, not the product itself. This means that the spikes typical of a genuine shortage should not be expected, and the increase will be gradual and tied to the restoration of logistics capacity.

### Advice for consumers: a two-week stockpile without panic

Specialists unanimously urge people not to give in to panic and not to buy food in large bulk quantities, since it is precisely this behavior that creates an artificial shortage and further strains already overloaded supply chains. Where necessary, experts advise limiting purchases to a stockpile of at most two weeks. This approach helps keep goods available for all shoppers and speeds up the normalization of the situation as warehouse infrastructure is restored.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Delivery up to a week and new price tags: what experts say about the consequences of Russian strikes on warehouses](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/dostavka-tizhnya-i-novi-tsinniki-shcho-kazhut-1788000870.html) - Первичный источник: оценки Максима Гопки, Денаса Марчука, Арсена Дидура и Александра Тараненко; цифры по площади разрушений (около 400 тыс. кв. м / ~30% в Киеве и области), сроки доставки 24–72 ч → до недели, уязвимые категории и издержечный характер роста цен. Прогнозы цен и сроков — экспертные оценки.
- [Ukraine strikes Ozon warehouses again. What is known as of August 27](https://kaktus.media/doc/552010_ykraina_nanesla_ocherednye_ydary_po_skladam_ozon._chto_izvestno_na_27_avgysta.html) - Подтверждено по источнику kaktus.media
- [Ukraine carries out drone strikes on Russian online retailer Ozon](https://ru.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/08/24/ukraine-attacks-ozon) - Подтверждено по источнику ru.euronews.com
- [What Ukraine's "long-range sanctions" against Russia deliver](https://www.dw.com/ru/cto-daut-ukraine-dalnobojnye-sankcii-protiv-rossii/a-78151543) - Подтверждено по источнику dw.com

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: Will there be a physical food shortage in Ukraine?
**A:** No. Experts state that there is no physical shortage and none is expected, because domestic production exceeds consumption and basic needs are met in every region. The problem lies in logistics, not in the absence of goods.

### Q: How long could delivery times to stores be delayed?
**A:** Delivery, which previously took 24–72 hours, could last up to a week due to the destruction of major distribution centers. Retail chains and producers are switching to direct deliveries.

### Q: Which products will disappear from the shelves first?
**A:** First and foremost, goods with a short shelf life and a cold chain: dairy products, chilled meat and fish, and fresh vegetables. Mass-market bread varieties are less affected, as they are delivered by factories directly to the store.

### Q: Will basic products become more expensive, and why?
**A:** A moderate rise in prices is expected, driven by additional costs for logistics, fuel and electricity (generators), rather than by a lack of goods.

### Q: Should people stockpile food in advance?
**A:** No. Specialists urge people not to give in to panic and not to buy goods in large bulk quantities, so as not to create an artificial shortage; where necessary, a stockpile of at most two weeks is enough.