Blue Apron just partnered with the godfather of sustainable meat - and the move will transform its meal kits

In 1969, Bill Niman bought his first ranch, an 11-acre plot with pigs and chickens that roamed freely, for $18,000. Over the next four decades, that ranch grew to several hundred acres, and he built up his own sustainable meat supply company, Niman Ranch.

At the time, there weren't many farms who let their animals graze in open fields and spend time in low-density feedlots. Niman, who is essentially the godfather of sustainable meat, pioneered humanely raised livestock in the US.

In 2007, Niman launched BN Ranch, a small network of farms in California and New Zealand that only raise grass-fed cattle and free-range turkeys.

Now, he has sold BN Ranch to a meal kit company with a national reach: Blue Apron. Niman's not leaving - he will be in charge of building a supply chain for all the beef, pork, turkey, and chicken that Blue Apron ships in its 8 million meals every month.

Take a look inside Niman's family farm, where Blue Apron will source some of its meat.