SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

6 Months Ended

Feb. 01, 2020

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

NOTE 1—SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Nature of Business

United Natural Foods, Inc. and its subsidiaries (the “Company” or “UNFI”) is a leading distributor of natural, organic, specialty, produce and conventional grocery and non-food products, and provider of support services. The Company sells its products primarily throughout the United States and Canada.

Fiscal Year

The Company’s fiscal years end on the Saturday closest to July 31 and contain either 52 or 53 weeks. References to the second quarter of fiscal 2020 and 2019 relate to the 13-week fiscal quarters ended February 1, 2020 and January 26, 2019, respectively. References to fiscal 2020 and 2019 year-to-date relate to the 26-week fiscal periods ended February 1, 2020 and January 26, 2019, respectively.

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements include the accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries. All significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation, with the exception of sales transactions from continuing to discontinued operations for wholesale supply discussed further in Note 3—Revenue Recognition. Unless otherwise indicated, references to the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations, the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets and the Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements exclude all amounts related to discontinued operations. Refer to Note 18—Discontinued Operations for additional information about discontinued operations.

The accompanying unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements have been prepared pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) for interim financial information, including the instructions to Form 10-Q and Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, certain information and note disclosures normally required in complete financial statements prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) have been condensed or omitted. In the Company’s opinion, these Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements include all adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of the financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the interim periods presented. However, the results of operations for interim periods may not be indicative of the results that may be expected for a full year. These Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended August 3, 2019 (the “Annual Report”). Except as described for lease accounting below, there were no material changes in significant accounting policies from those described in the Company’s Annual Report.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash equivalents consist of highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less. The Company’s banking arrangements allow it to fund outstanding checks when presented to the financial institution for payment. The Company funds all intraday bank balance overdrafts during the same business day. Checks outstanding in excess of bank balances create book overdrafts, which are recorded in Accounts payable in the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets and are reflected as an operating activity in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. As of February 1, 2020 and August 3, 2019, the Company had net book overdrafts of $236.8 million and $236.9 million, respectively.

Inventories, Net

Inventories are valued at the lower of cost or market. Substantially all of the Company’s inventories consist of finished goods and a substantial portion of its inventories have a last-in, first-out (“LIFO”) reserve applied. Interim LIFO calculations are based on the Company’s estimates of expected year-end inventory levels and costs, as the actual valuation of inventory under the LIFO method is computed at the end of each year based on the inventory levels and costs at that time. If the first-in, first-out method had been used, Inventories, net would have been higher by approximately $37.1 million and $24.1 million at February 1, 2020 and August 3, 2019, respectively.

Leases

At the inception or modification of contract, the Company determines whether a lease exists and classifies its leases as an operating or finance lease at commencement. Subsequent to commencement, lease classification is only reassessed upon a change to the expected lease term or contract modification. Finance and operating lease assets represent the Company’s right to use an underlying asset as lessee for the lease term, and lease obligations represent the Company’s obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. These assets and obligations are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the present value of lease payments, net of incentives, over the lease term. Incremental borrowing rates are estimated based on the Company’s borrowing rate as of the lease commencement date to determine the present value of lease payments, when lease contracts do not provide a readily determinable implicit rate. Incremental borrowing rates are determined by using the yield curve based on the Company’s credit rating adjusted for the Company’s specific debt profile and secured debt risk. The lease asset also reflects any prepaid rent, initial direct costs incurred and lease incentives received. The Company’s lease terms include option extension periods when it is reasonably certain that those options will be exercised. Leases with an initial expected term of 12 months or less are not recorded in the consolidated balance sheets and the related lease expense is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. For all classes of underlying assets, the Company has elected to not separate fixed lease components from the fixed nonlease components.

The Company recognizes contractual obligations and receipts on a gross basis, such that the related lease obligation to the landlord is presented separately from the sublease created by the lease assignment to the assignee. As a result, the Company continues to recognize on its Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets the operating lease assets and liabilities, and finance lease assets and obligations, for assigned leases.

The Company records operating lease expense and income using the straight-line method within Operating expenses, and lease income on a straight-line method for leases with its customers within Net sales. Finance lease expense is recognized as amortization expense within Operating expenses, and interest expense within Interest expense, net. For operating leases with step rent provisions whereby the rental payments increase over the life of the lease, and for leases where the Company receives rent-free periods, the Company recognizes expense and income based on a straight-line basis based on the total minimum lease payments to be made or lease receipts expected to be received over the expected lease term, including rent-free periods. The Company is generally obligated for property tax, insurance and maintenance expenses related to leased properties, which often represent variable lease expenses.  For contractual obligations on properties where the Company remains the primary obligor upon assignment of the lease and does not obtain a release from landlords or retain the equity interests in the legal entities with the related rent contracts, the Company continues to recognize rent expense and rent income within Operating expenses.

Operating and finance lease assets are reviewed for impairment based on an ongoing review of circumstances that indicate the assets may no longer be recoverable, such as closures of retail stores, distribution centers and other properties that are no longer being utilized in current operations, and other factors. The Company calculates operating and finance lease impairments using a discount rate to calculate the present value of estimated subtenant rentals that could be reasonably obtained for the property. Lease impairment charges are recorded as a component of Restructuring, acquisition and integration related expenses in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations.

The calculation of lease impairment charges requires significant judgments and estimates, including estimated subtenant rentals, discount rates and future cash flows based on the Company’s experience and knowledge of the market in which the property is located, previous efforts to dispose of similar assets and the assessment of existing market conditions. Impairment reserves are reflected as a reduction to Operating lease assets. Refer to Note 11—Leases for additional information.