§1What this business is
A mango orchard is a tree crop for tropical and sub-tropical plains; it is not grown commercially above 600 m and young trees cannot stand severe frost. The model plants grafted trees 8 m apart, 63 to the acre, in July–August in rainfed areas or February–March where there is irrigation. The orchard starts bearing from the sixth year and the trees stay productive for more than 35 years. Until the canopy closes at 5–6 years, pulses, wheat, oilseeds, vegetables or chillies are grown between the rows. Fruit is graded by size, colour and maturity and packed in ventilated cartons of 5 to 10 kg for the market.
Capacity: One acre with 63 plants at 8 m x 8 m. Bearing starts in year 6; yield is 5 tonnes in the first bearing year, rising to 7 tonnes.
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
A farmer with own irrigated land in a mango belt who can wait six years and grow inter-crops meanwhile.
Who it is not for
Farmers on leased land with a short lease, or in hill areas above 600 m.
Advantages
- Trees stay productive for more than 35 years
- Mango is the most popular fruit in the home market
- Inter-crops give income for the first 5–6 years
- Both fresh fruit and pulp have export buyers
Drawbacks
- No fruit until the sixth year
- Mature green fruit keeps only 4–10 days at room temperature
- The whole crop comes in one short season
- Wholesalers and commission agents control the trade
Skills you need
- Choosing the variety that sells in your region
- Training young grafted plants to shape
- Pest and disease sprays at flowering
- Harvesting, grading and carton packing
Why difficulty 3/5: Six-year wait before fruit, then a short and crowded selling season.
§3Market
Who buys
- Wholesalers and commission agents at fruit mandis
- Mango pulp, pickle and chutney units
- Exporters of fresh mango
How it sells
- Truck loads in cartons or baskets to wholesale markets
- Sale through commission agents
- Growers' associations with pack-house and pre-cooling facilities
Good to know
- The model values mango at ₹10,000 a tonne.
- Average yield ranges from 5 to 9 tonnes an acre, says the report.
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Tube well with submersible pump | — | ₹45,000 |
| Drip irrigation system with fertigation equipment | for 1 acre | ₹25,000 |
| Store and pump house | — | ₹15,000 |
| Labour room | — | ₹5,000 |
| Farm implements | — | ₹5,400 |
| Fencing | — | ₹29,600 |
From: National Horticulture Board model bankable project — Mango
- Planting material — grafted mango plants63 plants an acre at 8 m x 8 m
- Manures and fertilisersfirst-year provision in the model
- Insecticides and pesticidesfirst-year provision in the model
From: National Horticulture Board model bankable project — Mango
§5Licences & registration
- No licence is needed to grow fruit on your own or leased farm land
- Land ownership or registered lease papers (banks and subsidy offices ask for them)
- Permission for a new borewell where the state groundwater authority requires it
- For export: Import Export Code, APEDA registration and a phytosanitary certificate
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 model assumes the farmer puts in ₹75,000, a capital subsidy of ₹30,000 and a bank term loan of ₹45,000 at 12% interest on the ₹1,50,000 cost. Today NHB's open-field scheme is for orchards above 2 hectares, leaves out land cost and needs a bank term loan; for a one-acre orchard ask the district horticulture office about state schemes.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: One-acre model; the cost of land is not included. Cultivation expenses ₹21,000 (planting material ₹2,000, manures and fertilisers ₹5,000, insecticides and pesticides ₹2,000, labour ₹8,400, power ₹3,600) + irrigation ₹45,000 (tube well with submersible pump ₹45,000) + drip irrigation system ₹25,000 + infrastructure ₹25,400 (store and pump house ₹15,000, labour room ₹5,000, farm implements ₹5,400) + land development ₹33,600 (land levelling ₹4,000, fencing ₹29,600) = ₹1,50,000.
Working capital: First-year cultivation expenses of ₹21,000 are inside the project cost. Inter-crops are meant to carry the orchard through the years before fruiting.
Year not printed on the report. It costs labour at ₹70 a man-day, so these are old prices — planting material, labour, borewell and drip costs are much higher now.
§8Export potential
Confirm the HS code in the DGFT ITC(HS) lookup before you export
Export council / board: APEDA
- The report estimates mango exports at 45 thousand tonnes worth ₹100 crore in 2002-03.
- Fresh mangoes went to Bangladesh, UAE, Saudi Arabia and UK.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Severe frost on young trees
- Hot dry winds with low humidity at fruit set
- A glut in the season pulling prices down
- Pests and disorders cutting the saleable crop
§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 mango orchard unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
- Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (No licence is needed to grow fruit on your own or leased farm land, Land ownership or registered lease papers (banks and subsidy offices ask for them)), 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
§12Watch
There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.
Want to start Mango Orchard?
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.