§1What this business is
Milk is pasteurised, mixed with cream, butter and sugar, homogenised, aged for 24 hours at 0–4 °C, frozen in a batch freezer and packed in cups and cones. The report sells through cart vendors who get 35% of sales as commission, plus hotels and bulk buyers.
Capacity: 250 kg a day, 75,000 kg a year (one 8-hour shift, 300 days).
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
Someone with dairy access and a team of cart vendors in nearby towns.
Who it is not for
Places with long power cuts and no backup — melted stock is a total loss.
Advantages
- Huge summer demand; also served at weddings and parties
- Local brands sell well in small towns, says the report
- Vendor network works on commission only
- Gross margin around 18–22%
Drawbacks
- Needs a full cold chain — freezers, carts, power backup
- Sales drop sharply in winter
- Milk prices change often
- Strong national brands
Skills you need
- Mix formulation and hygiene
- Running a cold chain
- Managing vendors and collections
- Seasonal planning
Why difficulty 3/5: Cold chain, hygiene and a vendor network all have to work together.
§3Market
Who buys
- Railways (named as the biggest bulk buyer)
- Hotels, restaurants, resorts and flight kitchens
- School children and families through street vendors
How it sells
- Cart vendors on 35% commission
- Shops with freezers
Good to know
- Demand peaks in summer months.
- Brand consciousness is lower in rural and semi-urban areas, so local brands sell, per the report.
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| SS milk storage tank, 300 L | 2 | — |
| SS steam-jacketed pan, 400 L | 1 | — |
| SS steam-jacketed pasteuriser, 320 L, with 6 HP agitator motor | 1 | — |
| SS two-stage homogeniser, 350 L, 4.5 HP | 1 | — |
| SS surface cooler (4.4 °C to 0 °C) | 1 | — |
| SS ageing vat, 300 L, with condensing unit | 1 | — |
| Batch freezer, 35 L, 9 TR with 6 HP compressor | 1 | — |
| Deep freezer, volumetric filling machine and baby boiler (non-IBR) | 1 each | ₹16.70 lakh for all plant & machinery |
From: PMEGP sample project report — Ice Cream (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)
- Milk54,000 L a year at ₹30 a litre
- Cream and butter6,300 kg cream at ₹70 and 2,200 kg butter at ₹400 a kg
- Sugar and corn syrup10,900 kg sugar at ₹35 and 4,200 kg corn syrup at ₹30 a kg
- Stabilisers, emulsifiers and flavours3,225 kg at ₹200 a kg
- Printed cups, sticks and paper covers7,50,000 each at ₹1, ₹0.25 and ₹0.50; full-year raw material ₹54.06 L at 100%
From: PMEGP sample project report — Ice Cream (prepared by Udyami/Samadhan)
Suppliers in Building Business Bazaar
National Dairy Development Board, Anand · Anand →Chilton Refrigeration Industries · Kochi →Cool Tech · Kochi →Grindex Engg. Co · Coimbatore →Guru Instruments and Spares · Kochi →Machine Tools Traders (Madras) · Chennai →Venkateswara Engg. Works · Coimbatore →
In our raw material database
Sugar →Milk (raw) →Skimmed milk powder (SMP) →Fruit pulp (mango, guava, papaya) →Guar gum →
§5Licences & registration
- FSSAI licence or registration
- Udyam registration
- GST registration
- Consent from the State Pollution Control Board
- BIS standard IS 2802 is cited in the report (voluntary)
§6Schemes & subsidies
- PMEGPCentralActive15–35% subsidy
- PMFMECentralUnclear35% subsidy, up to ₹10 lakh
- CGTMSECentralActiveNo collateral, up to ₹10 crore
Prepared for PMEGP; PMFME and CGTMSE fit a dairy-based food unit of this size.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Building & civil work (2,000 sq ft) ₹2.00 L + plant & machinery ₹16.70 L + furniture ₹0.50 L + pre-operative ₹0.50 L + working capital ₹5.30 L = ₹25.00 L. Term loan ₹17.73 L, working-capital finance ₹4.77 L, own ₹2.50 L.
Working capital: Working capital ₹5.30 L (bank ₹4.77 L): 15 days of finished stock and raw material.
Year not printed in the report — check current machinery and raw-material prices.
§8Export potential
Confirm the HS code in the DGFT ITC(HS) lookup before you export
Export council / board: APEDA
- Export needs frozen containers; most small units sell locally.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Power failure and melting
- Food safety failures
- Winter slump
- Milk price rise
§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 ice cream making unit 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 or registration, 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 Ice Cream Making Unit?
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.