VANCOUVER — Commercial juicers toss out thousands of tons of nutrient-rich citrus rinds every year. Justin Cheung turned that rubbish into a six-figure packaged food enterprise.
Having founded Second Savour as an 18-year-old undergraduate at Simon Fraser University's Beedie School of Business, Cheung steered the upcycled food brand to $100,000 in revenue during its most recent fiscal year. The company manufactures its signature line—Citrus Treats by Second Savour—by rescuing discarded orange, lemon, and grapefruit skins from cold-pressed juicing operations and commercial supermarkets across British Columbia. He dehydrates and candies the scraps. Consumers buy them off the shelf.
The math worked.
Technically, Second Savour began as a humble student initiative under Enactus, SFU's campus entrepreneurship collective. Cheung, drawing inspiration from childhood fruit snacks he ate in Asia, wondered whether industrial food residue could sustain a viable retail product. The early execution sputtered. The original student team brought in roughly $460 over its opening 12 months before walking away from the venture entirely.
Cheung stayed. He reset the company's targets, establishing an ambitious $50,000 revenue benchmark for the subsequent operating period. The restructuring demanded an immediate overhaul of the enterprise's procurement, manufacturing, and distribution infrastructure. Operating funds were scarce, but Cheung assembled an initial working capital pool of roughly $3,000 at the start of 2025. By the close of that year, Second Savour pulled in approximately $70,000 in revenue before crossing the six-figure threshold in its latest filing.
| Operating Milestone | Capital & Financial Status | Procurement & Product Developments |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 (Enactus Launch) | $460 generated | Extracurricular concept; original student team exits |
| Operating Year 2025 | ~$70,000 in revenue | Started year with ~$3,000; salvaged commercial juicer rinds |
| Latest Fiscal Period | $100,000 in revenue | Commercial retail expansion across British Columbia |
To build stable inventory margins, Cheung secured corporate sourcing arrangements with Canadian supermarket banner Save-On-Foods and Chasers, a prominent regional cold-pressed juice wholesaler. The logistics solve twin headaches: juicers eliminate costly organic waste disposal fees, while Second Savour locks down food-grade fruit skins at negligible raw material costs.
The processing turns that discard into sweet and sour orange, sour lemon, and bittersweet grapefruit candied strips. Yet, shelf traction requires broad palate appeal rather than just green marketing. Cheung has repeatedly stressed that environmental goodwill alone never convinces grocery shoppers to make a second purchase. The flavor profile has to stand on its own.
The concept centered on citrus peels left behind by grocery stores and juice producers. Rather than allowing the material to go to waste, the process converts discarded peels into packaged consumer snacks.
Simon Fraser University Enterprise Profile
Market Context: Global consumer packaged goods manufacturers increasingly seek "upcycled certified" supply chains, capitalizing on consumer backlash against retail food waste. By creating high-margin confectioneries out of zero-cost organic byproducts, micro-manufacturers can achieve positive unit economics far faster than traditional specialty food brands burdened by volatile commodity ingredient costs.
Commercial scale exacted a severe operational toll. Cheung remained enrolled in his full-time undergraduate studies at the Beedie School of Business while overseeing production batches and logistics. Assistance arrived through SFU's Charles Chang Institute for Entrepreneurship, which accepted Second Savour into its dedicated entrepreneurship co-operative track.
A salaried co-op stipend cushioned overhead. Specialized faculty mentorship refined the packaging and pricing strategy. But manufacturing demands surged relentlessly. Company records documented Cheung logging 40-hour operating weeks that frequently ballooned to 60, 80, and nearly 95 hours during peak retail distribution runs. University venture grant awards, pitch competition prizes, and direct retail financial contributions kept the young venture solvent through critical supply crunches.
Greater retail volume awaits. Second Savour is finalizing product formulations for dark chocolate-covered orange and white chocolate-covered lemon bites in partnership with a Vancouver-based confectionery maker. Meanwhile, commercial negotiations remain underway with regional supermarket chains IGA and Fresh St. Market to introduce the expanded lineup directly into general confection aisles across Western Canada.