§1What this business is
A gharat's water wheel powers a modern cold-press expeller installed in the mill, so no grid power or heat is needed. Oilseeds bought from local farmers are cleaned, sorted and pressed; the oil is filtered naturally, bottled or tinned and labelled, and the oil cake is sold as cattle feed or organic manure. The DUY profile is written as a programme of 20 gharat units with shared survey, training, transport and marketing.
Capacity: 40 litres of oil a day per unit.
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
A gharat owner, FPO or NGO-backed cluster that can manage several units and a common brand.
Who it is not for
Someone without access to a working gharat on a steady stream.
Advantages
- Free, renewable water power — no electricity bill for pressing
- Cold-pressed oil sells at a premium as a health product
- Revives old gharats and local oilseed farming
- Oil cake adds income as cattle feed or manure
Drawbacks
- Water flow falls in the dry season and freezes in high areas
- Gharats are on remote streams — transport is costly
- Small output per unit; branding has to be shared across units
- Edible oil needs strict hygiene and testing
Skills you need
- Gharat and expeller maintenance
- Oilseed cleaning and pressing
- FSSAI-compliant filtering, bottling and labelling
- Brand building for premium oil
Why difficulty 3/5: Simple pressing, but water-power, remote sites and food-safety rules need careful handling.
§3Market
Who buys
- Health-conscious households
- Organic food stores
- Ayurvedic, massage and cosmetic users (sesame, flaxseed, mustard oil)
- Dairy farmers buying oil cake as feed
How it sells
- Local markets and cooperative societies
- Organic food stores
- Online platforms
- Oil cake sold as cattle feed or manure
Good to know
- The profile says cold pressing keeps antioxidants, omega fatty acids and natural flavour.
- Digital traceability is suggested to reach wider markets.
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Cold press oil extraction unit | 20 (one per gharat) | — |
| Filtration unit | 20 | — |
| Packaging (bottling and labelling) machine | 20 | — |
| Storage tanks for seed and oil | 40 | — |
| Gharat water-system repair | 20 | — |
| Quality testing kits | 20 | — |
| Machinery procurement in total | — | ₹12,00,000 |
From: Uttarakhand DUY project profile — Gharat-Based Cold Press Oil Units in Uttarakhand
- Mustard, sesame, flaxseed and groundnut seedbought from local farmers; the profile suggests farmer-producer groups for steady supply
- Bottles or tins and labels
From: Uttarakhand DUY project profile — Gharat-Based Cold Press Oil Units in Uttarakhand
§5Licences & registration
- FSSAI licence
- Udyam registration
- GST registration
- Legal Metrology registration for pre-packed oil
- Permission from the gram panchayat or water/irrigation authority for gharat repairs and water use
§6Schemes & subsidies
- PMFMECentralUnclear35% subsidy, up to ₹10 lakh
- PMEGPCentralActive15–35% subsidy
- MudraCentralActiveLoan up to ₹20 lakh, no collateral
- CGTMSECentralActiveNo collateral, up to ₹10 crore
The profile names PMFME and UREDA (Uttarakhand Renewable Energy Development Agency) programmes; PMEGP and MUDRA suit a single unit; CGTMSE for a collateral-free loan.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Survey & mobilisation ₹3 L + infrastructure ₹6 L + machinery (cold press, filtration, packaging) ₹12 L + initial seed stock ₹5 L + training ₹3 L + first-year salaries ₹7 L + transport & logistics ₹4 L + marketing & branding ₹5 L + admin & legal ₹2 L + contingency ₹3 L = ₹50 L. The machinery table counts 20 units of each item (20 presses, 20 filters, 20 packing machines, 40 tanks).
Working capital: Initial seed stock ₹5 L in the budget. Finance in the profile: gharat owners contribute land and labour, plus PMFME, UREDA programmes, bank or microfinance loans and CSR funds.
Year not printed on the profile — check current machinery prices. The profile mixes a 20-unit programme budget with per-unit income figures; plan your own single-unit budget.
§8Export potential
Confirm the HS code in the DGFT ITC(HS) lookup before you export
Export council / board: IOPEPC (Indian Oilseeds and Produce Export Promotion Council)
- Edible-oil exports have been restricted at times — check the current DGFT export policy before you plan.
- You need an Import Export Code (IEC) from DGFT before the first shipment.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Low water flow in dry months
- Oil turning rancid without proper filtering and storage
- Seed supply and price swings
- Floods damaging stream-side mills
§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan
A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.
- Days 1–30: Visit a working gharat (water-mill) cold-press oil unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
- Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (FSSAI licence, Udyam registration), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
- Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.
§11Who to connect with
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 Gharat (Water-Mill) Cold-Press Oil?
DPR, loan file or registration — ask us on WhatsApp.
¶Sources
Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.