§1What this business is

Green chillies are de-stemmed, washed and boiled, made into paste, pulped and mixed with spices, starch and preservatives, cooked in steam-jacketed kettles, homogenised, then filled in pouches or bottles. The sauce is used in Indo-Chinese dishes, noodles, fried rice and as a dip.

Capacity: 1,000 kg a day (12-hour working); 3,00,000 kg a year at full capacity; 40% in year 1.

§2Is it right for you?

Who it is for

Someone who can sell in bulk to restaurants, caterers and street-food vendors, or build a local brand.

Who it is not for

Someone hoping to beat national brands on supermarket shelves from day one.

Advantages

  • Fast-food and Indo-Chinese demand is growing
  • Green chillies are grown everywhere
  • Long shelf life with proper processing
  • Can add red chilli, schezwan and other sauces

Drawbacks

  • Raw material is about 84% of production cost in year 1
  • Big brands dominate retail shelves
  • Chilli prices jump in some seasons
  • Needs strict hygiene and preservative limits

Skills you need

  • Recipe and consistency control
  • Food safety and preservative limits
  • Buying chillies in season
  • Selling to HoReCa and distributors

Why difficulty 3/5: Easy process, hard market against big brands.

§3Market

Who buys

  • Fast-food outlets and Indo-Chinese restaurants
  • Hotels and caterers
  • Households
  • Street-food vendors

How it sells

  • Food-service distributors
  • Grocery retailers
  • Direct bulk supply in pouches

Good to know

  • The report expects the Indian Chinese, hot and barbeque sauce market to grow at more than 15% a year (2017-18 to 2022-23 estimate).

§4Raw material & machinery

ItemQtyCost
Steam-jacketed kettle, tilting type1₹2,50,000
Pulveriser1₹2,25,000
Pulper1₹2,25,000
Steam-jacketed kettle, fixed type1₹3,50,000
Homogeniser1₹3,75,000
Filling tank1₹80,000
Transfer pump1₹80,000
Pouch filling machine1₹2,60,000
Crown capping machine1₹55,000

From: PMEGP sample project report — Green Chilli Sauce (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

  • Green chilli₹46–50 per kg (report)
  • RO water
  • Spices and condiments (onion, garlic and ginger powder)
  • Emulsifier/stabiliser (corn starch, modified starch)
  • Preservatives (salt, acid, sodium benzoate)average raw material cost ₹70–75 per kg of sauce (report)

From: PMEGP sample project report — Green Chilli Sauce (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

§5Licences & registration

  1. FSSAI licence
  2. Udyam registration
  3. GST registration
  4. NOC from the State Pollution Control Board (named in the report)
  5. Legal Metrology registration
  6. Trademark (optional, per report)

We can do this registration for you

§6Schemes & subsidies

PMEGP and PMFME fit; MUDRA and CGTMSE for credit.

§7Money

How the investment is worked out: Samadhan report: plant & machinery ₹19.00 L, furniture ₹1.00 L, working capital ₹5.00 L = ₹25.00 L. Land (2,000–2,500 sq ft) own or rented.

Working capital: Working capital ₹5.00 L (bank ₹4.50 L); 15 days' raw material and 10 days' finished 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

2103.90Sauces and preparations therefor; mixed condiments and seasonings — other

Export council / board: APEDA

  • HS codes are from the WCO HS 2022 list; 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

  • Chilli price spikes
  • Spoilage or fermentation in packs
  • FSSAI quality failures
  • Low brand recall

§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 green chilli sauce 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, Udyam 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

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 Green Chilli Sauce?

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

Get a DPR / loan file made

Sources

  1. PMEGP sample project report — Green Chilli Sauce (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)

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