§1What this business is

Pears are sorted, washed, de-stemmed and pitted, blanched in a kettle, dried in a solar dryer and packed. The model unit makes 500 kg of dried slices a day and keeps fresh fruit in a cold store. The DPR assumes pears at ₹80 a kg, 33% recovery (about 3.3 kg of fruit for 1 kg of dried slices) and a sale price of ₹600 a kg.

Capacity: 150 tonnes of dried pear slices a year (500 kg a day), 300 working days of 8–10 hours. Year 1 is for construction; use is 55% in Year 2, 65%, 75%, 90% and 100% from Year 6. Fruit needed: 916.6 kg a day at 55% to 1,666.66 kg a day at full use.

§2Is it right for you?

Who it is for

A fruit grower, FPO or small processor in a pear-growing hill district.

Who it is not for

Someone far from pear orchards who must truck fruit a long way.

Advantages

  • Dried fruit keeps for months without a cold chain
  • Uses pears that would otherwise spoil in the glut season
  • A solar dryer keeps fuel cost low
  • The same line can dry other fruits out of season

Drawbacks

  • Fruit is 3.3 times the weight of the product, so raw material is the main cost
  • Pears are seasonal and need a cold store
  • Dried pear is a small, new market in India

Skills you need

  • Grading fruit for ripeness
  • Blanching and drying to a safe moisture level
  • Hygienic packing
  • Selling to dry-fruit traders and bakeries

Why difficulty 3/5: Simple process, but a seasonal fruit and a market you have to build.

§3Market

Who buys

  • Dry-fruit and grocery shops
  • Bakeries and confectioners
  • Health-food and online buyers

How it sells

  • Wholesalers and distributors
  • Direct supply to retailers
  • Online marketplaces

Good to know

  • The DPR assumes an average sale price of ₹600 a kg.

§4Raw material & machinery

ItemQtyCost
Cold store, 9,000 kg1₹8 lakh
Washing tank, 500 litre1₹0.60 lakh
Blanching kettle, 200 litre1₹0.60 lakh
Fruit pitting machine1₹1 lakh
Solar dryer, 600 kg1₹2 lakh
Pulveriser1₹1.40 lakh
Centrifugal sifter with screens1₹0.25 lakh
Induction sealer1₹0.30 lakh
Shrink tunnel1₹0.35 lakh
Continuous sealing machine1₹0.25 lakh
Batch coding machine1₹0.12 lakh
Weighing balance1₹0.06 lakh
Accessories1₹0.50 lakh

From: NIFTEM-Thanjavur (IIFPT) PMFME model DPR — Dehydrated Pear

  • Fresh pearscosted at ₹80 a kg; 33% recovery; bought from growers or FPOs under contract
  • Packing materialpouches and cartons

From: NIFTEM-Thanjavur (IIFPT) PMFME model DPR — Dehydrated Pear

§5Licences & registration

  1. Udyam registration
  2. GST registration
  3. FSSAI licence or registration
  4. Legal Metrology registration for packaged goods

We can do this registration for you

Start it in your state

Pick your state: today’s cost, central + state subsidy, raw material, land and help, on one page.

§6Schemes & subsidies

The DPR is written for PMFME (35% credit-linked subsidy, up to ₹10 lakh, for micro food units). PMEGP is another route for a new unit of this size, and CGTMSE can back the bank loan without collateral.

§7Money

How the investment is worked out: Building 20 × 32 × 12 ft ₹5.18 L + plant and machinery ₹15.43 L + utilities ₹0.80 L + other fixed assets ₹0.90 L + pre-operative ₹0.90 L + contingencies ₹1.20 L + working capital margin ₹11.28 L = ₹35.69 lakh. Land is assumed to be already with the owner. Note: this DPR prints the same cost figures as the dried apricot powder DPR from the same institute, so check each line against your own quotations.

Working capital: Working capital margin of ₹11.28 L is part of the project cost; bank working capital is ₹33.85 L in Year 2, ₹40.01 L in Year 3 and ₹54.56 L in Year 4.

Year not printed on the DPR (the PMFME scheme began in 2020) — check current machinery prices.

How to prepare a loan file

§8Export potential

Export council / board: APEDA

  • The DPR gives no export costing; an exporter needs an IEC and registration with the export body before shipping.

§9Risks — where people fail

  • Rain or cloud slowing a solar dryer
  • Mould if slices are packed too moist
  • Fruit price rising above ₹80 a kg
  • Not finding buyers at ₹600 a kg

§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 dehydrated pear slices unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
  2. Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, GST registration), 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

§12Watch

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

Want to start Dehydrated Pear Slices?

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

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Sources

  1. NIFTEM-Thanjavur (IIFPT) PMFME model DPR — Dehydrated Pear

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