<p>New York-based startup Blue Apron delivers roughly 500,000 meals per month and is raising new funds, according to Fortune. A new round of venture capital funding could value the company close to $500 million. So far, the company has raised $40-50 million.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Founded 18 months ago, Blue Apron designs meal kits, which each contain all the ingredients to make three meals for two, four, or six people, depending on the preference selected.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><img src="https://cdn.andnowuknow.com/legacyWriterImages/1149238_604170472959205_502981151_o.jpg" alt="Cropped Images Apr 9th 2014" /><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">"The best food, ultimately, is made at home," says Matt Wadiak, a professional chef and co-founder of Blue Apron. "Our goal is to empower people and give them the tools to prepare good meals on their own."<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">The company buys food in bulk and splits it up at its own fulfillment centers, into different kits for individual subscribers. Kits are then sold by weekly subscription and delivered using outsourced delivery trucks.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Ingredients remain fresh and there is very little food wasted, because all sales are essentially pre-orders.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Currently, the meals are priced a bit on the expensive side, costing $60 per week for two people, which works out to be $10 per serving.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><img src="https://cdn.andnowuknow.com/legacyWriterImages/290197_442518735791047_234844167_o.jpg" alt="Cropped Images Apr 9th 2014" /><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">With over 200 employees, and offices in New York and California, Blue Apron has been expanding geographically across the United States, and it has also been expanding its offerings to accommodate dietary requirements such as kosher and pescetarian.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Regarding the funding, CEO Matt Salzberg, a former venture capitalist at Bessemer Venture Partners, said, "The truth is that we have not done a financing, so there is nothing to report here."<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Is the $500 million valuation realistic? How will this company scale up now that it has received additional funding? It will surely be interesting to see how this company fares as it continues to grow.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.blueapron.com/?gclid=CIyJi4z_1L0CFVKDfgodh6oAJA" target="_new"> Blue Apron </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
