§1What this business is

Jaggery is melted with water, sugar is dissolved in it, liquid glucose is added and the syrup is cooked, then mixed with split roasted peanuts. The mass is rolled and sheeted to size, cut into 10 g and 25 g bars, cooled, flow-wrapped and packed in PET jars and cartons. Buyers are kirana shops, sweet shops, school canteens, bus stands and highway stalls.

Capacity: 500 kg a day, 1,50,000 kg a year (300 days, 8 hours); 60,000 kg in year 1 at 40%.

§2Is it right for you?

Who it is for

Someone in a groundnut or jaggery area, or a sweet maker wanting a packaged line.

Who it is not for

Someone who cannot manage seasonal buying of peanuts and jaggery.

Advantages

  • Chikki is eaten everywhere, by children and adults
  • Mostly unorganised market with few big brands
  • Low break-even at 24%
  • Raw materials are local farm produce

Drawbacks

  • Peanuts and jaggery are about three-quarters of sales
  • Sticky product needs good packing against moisture
  • Price-sensitive buyers
  • Needs a 30 HP connection

Skills you need

  • Syrup cooking to the right point
  • Rolling and cutting line operation
  • Packaging and shelf life
  • Distributor and retail sales

Why difficulty 2/5: Simple product; the work is in buying raw material well and selling widely.

§3Market

Who buys

  • School children and families
  • Travellers on highways and at bus stands

How it sells

  • Kirana and sweet shops through distributors
  • School canteens
  • Highway stalls and bus stands

Good to know

  • The report says the market is mostly unorganised, with few dominant brands, and retailers play a key role.
  • It names school-going children and rural areas as the main targets.

§4Raw material & machinery

ItemQtyCost
Syrup-making vessel (₹50,000 each)2₹1,00,000
Chikki cooking-cum-mixing pan (₹2,00,000 each)2₹4,00,000
Chikki rolling, sheeting and cutting line1₹3,45,000
Flow-wrap packing machine1₹2,45,000
Gas station and pipelines1₹75,000
RO plant, 2,500 litres an hour1₹2,30,000
Other machinery and equipment—₹55,000

From: PMEGP sample project report — Chikki (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

  • Roasted blanched peanuts120 MT a year at full capacity, ₹1,10,000 per MT
  • Jaggery45 MT a year, ₹45,000 per MT
  • Sugar45 MT a year, ₹40,000 per MT
  • Liquid glucose20 MT a year, ₹28,000 per MT
  • Flow-wrap film, PET jars and cartonspacking

From: PMEGP sample project report — Chikki (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

§5Licences & registration

  1. FSSAI licence
  2. GST
  3. Udyam
  4. Trademark for the brand

We can do this registration for you

§6Schemes & subsidies

PMEGP sample project; PMFME fits a micro food unit; CGTMSE covers the collateral-free loan. The ₹24.56 L cost is above MUDRA's usual loan sizes.

§7Money

How the investment is worked out: Samadhan report: shed (500 sq ft) ₹3.00 L + plant & machinery ₹14.50 L + furniture ₹1.50 L + working capital ₹5.56 L = ₹24.56 L. Finance: term loan ₹17.10 L, WC loan ₹5.00 L, own ₹2.46 L.

Working capital: Working capital ₹5.56 lakh, bank limit ₹5.00 lakh — 5 days of stock.

Year not printed on the report — check current machinery prices.

How to prepare a loan file

§8Export potential

Confirm the HS code in the DGFT ITC(HS) lookup before you export

1704.90Sugar confectionery not containing cocoa — other

Export council / board: APEDA

  • Peanut-based chikki may be classed as prepared groundnuts (2008) in some cases — confirm with customs.
  • Confirm the 8-digit ITC(HS) line with DGFT or your customs broker.
  • You need an Import Export Code (IEC) from DGFT before the first shipment.

§9Risks — where people fail

  • Peanut and jaggery price swings
  • Moisture making chikki sticky
  • Local competition
  • Food-safety lapses

§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan

A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.

  1. Days 1–30: Visit a working chikki (peanut brittle) making unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
  2. Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (FSSAI licence, GST), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
  3. Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.

§11Who to connect with

Not verified yet

Associations, clusters and training institutes — the directory is being built. Connect

§12Watch

There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.

Want to start Chikki (Peanut Brittle) Making?

DPR, loan file or registration — ask us on WhatsApp.

Get a DPR / loan file made

Sources

  1. PMEGP sample project report — Chikki (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.