The following is an extended version of the piece that appears in our July 2024 issue.
Crunch On! Snacks (Photo by Heather Booysen Photography)
Crunchy and oddly satisfying, freeze-dried candy and other food items have been popping up at more and more convenience stores in recent years, especially on the West Coast. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, “food enthusiast” Amy Lu says she began to notice the snacks trending across social media, particularly TikTok. Her curiosity was sparked.
“I started researching; that’s kind of what I did as a defense contractor, I was in the data science department,” Lu says.
Unable to find anyone in the Hampton Roads area where she lives making the crispy treats, Lu ended up purchasing samples online from Etsy. After learning the benefits of the preservation process and recognizing the potential business opportunity, Lu purchased a freeze-drying machine and started Crunch On! Snacks in April 2021.
“I got a retail store that October and quit my job in January 2022,” she says. “It was something new I could introduce to my community. I think timing wise, it just worked out. I watched it grow and people’s interest [build], and I was just having so much fun with it because it’s niche and food related, and then the sales aspect.”
Declaring Crunch On! Snacks her midlife crisis and pandemic project, now a successful business, Lu brought the freeze-dried goodies to the Richmond region this year, selling Tuesdays at Birdhouse Farmers Market and handing out samples to curious customers.
Coming from a large family of restaurateurs, Lu was raised in the food industry in Hampton Roads and says she has always worked hard and had a side hustle. When she was growing up, her parents operated a number of restaurants and Asian grocery stores.
"A lot of people who have lived and grew up in the area still remember our restaurants. Blue Hawaii was in the ’70s and ’80s, and every China Garden in the Hampton Roads area was started by my family,” Lu says. “I just remember going up in that environment with all my cousins. Everything always revolved around food.
"It’s always been very deep-rooted in me, always had that itch for entrepreneurship,” she adds. “I watched my family; they were our role models, and they worked really hard and came over as immigrants. They did their best to provide for us, and I feel like I had a really blessed childhood because of how hard my family worked.”
Currently, Lu freeze-dries everything from candy and chocolate to fruits and vegetables. Her weekly market supply includes whimsical, “whoa”-inducing Nerds Gummy Clusters (labeled as Viral Delights) or the fan favorite Unicorn Poop, aka freeze-dried Skittles. There’s also flavorful pineapple, sweet-tart mango, crispy snap peas (one of Lu’s favorites) and more.
Freeze-drying can take anywhere from six to 60 hours, depending on the food. “It doesn’t change the look, it doesn’t turn color and retains 95% to 98% of the nutrients and enzymes of the original product,” Lu explains. “It produces a much better product compared to dehydrating and canning.”
When possible, she sources local ingredients from Virginia growers Agriberry Farm, Old Tavern Farm, Leedstown Farm and Drumheller Orchard, along with taffy from North Carolina-based Forbes Candies. “I can trace the fruit back to the farm I got it from, and that’s the best thing about farmers market or smaller businesses, you have that control; I can choose [where] I buy from.”
Lu says a big aspect of her business is educating people about the differences between freeze-drying and dehydrating and canning. She also notes that as more businesses debut freeze-dried items, customers will start to recognize higher-quality products.
“The thing I’m most proud of is I know I can work hard, and I was able to do that without a college education,” Lu says. “I didn’t finish school, had always been the black sheep of the family, and as an Asian American they are very into, ‘You need to be a doctor, lawyer.’ It dawned on me, I was like, ‘From this point forward, I’m not going go try and please my family.’ I think I’ve proven myself, and I’m going to do what I love.”
Find Crunch On! Snacks online or locally at Birdhouse Farmers Market and RVA Big Market.
