Blue Apron: Scaling Manufacturing at Source in Kodiak, Alaska

Seafood | Direct Sourcing | Vertical Integration

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Key Focus Areas:

• Direct Sourcing

• Vertical Integration

• Supplier Partnerships

• Cost Optimization

• Quality Control

Challenge

Blue Apron’s seafood supply chain lacked transparency, with 90% of sourcing managed indirectly through distributors. This limited traceability, led to inconsistent quality, and low margins. Quality was further compromised by a process where product was frozen at the source, then thawed by distributors for processing, and frozen again before shipment, resulting in a double-frozen product with degraded texture. Ultimately, this compromised the customer experience, with lower-quality seafood that failed to meet expectations for freshness, taste, and overall value.

Approach

Working directly with fishermen and seafood producers, I led an initiative to bring processing and packaging closer to the source by incentivizing partners to install Blue Apron’s proprietary equipment at their production facilities. This allowed for seafood to be filleted, portioned, and vacuum sealed at peak freshness, dramatically improving quality, shelf life, and traceability. Partnering with farms and fisheries across Alaska, Vietnam, Thailand, Denmark, Latvia, and Norway, we built vertically integrated, direct supply chains that enabled fresh seafood to be shipped directly to Blue Apron distribution centers, bypassing the inefficiencies of the traditional distributor model.

Results

• Improved product quality and freshness

• Lowered cost of goods sold (COGS)

• Increased supply chain transparency and traceability

• Enhanced operational efficiency

• Strengthened strategic supplier partnerships