§1What this business is
Oranges are washed and passed through a citrus juice extractor and pulper. The juice is blended with sugar syrup, filtered, homogenised, pasteurised and filled into bottles; the machine list also has a carbonation unit for a fizzy version. The DPR plans 500 kg of ready-to-serve (RTS) drink a day and counts 1 kg of drink from 0.9 kg of orange. It is written as a new line in an existing fruit unit.
Capacity: 150 MT of orange RTS a year (500 kg a day), 300 days of 10 hours. The Project at a Glance says 70%, 80% and 90% of capacity in years 2–4; the profitability tables use 82.5, 97.5 and 112.5 MT (55%, 65% and 75%).
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
A fruit processor in an orange belt such as Nagpur, Darjeeling or the North-East who wants a local-brand bottled drink.
Who it is not for
Someone counting on quick profit — the DPR's own margin is small.
Advantages
- Oranges are cheap in season — ₹13 a kg in the DPR
- Orange is a familiar, well-liked flavour
- Same line can run other citrus and fruit drinks
- Profit figures in this DPR are modest and believable
Drawbacks
- Profit is thin — ₹6.82 L in year 2 on ₹61.88 L of sales
- Large brands dominate orange drinks
- Citrus juice turns bitter if handled badly
- Machinery is the costliest of the small drink lines (₹22.91 L)
Skills you need
- Citrus juice extraction without peel-oil bitterness
- Blending, pasteurising and carbonating
- Bottle hygiene and shelf-life testing
- Local distribution to shops and canteens
Why difficulty 3/5: Standard drink line, but citrus needs careful handling and margins are thin.
§3Market
Who buys
- Kirana shops, bakeries and cold-drink stalls
- School, college and office canteens
- Caterers and event organisers
How it sells
- Area distributors
- Local wholesalers
- Direct supply for events
Good to know
- The DPR assumes an average selling price of ₹75 a kg of drink.
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Cold store (1,500 kg) | 1 | ₹6 lakh |
| Fruit washer (100 kg/hr) | 1 | ₹1.5 lakh |
| Citrus juice extractor (100 kg/hr) | 1 | ₹0.8 lakh |
| Pulper (100 kg/hr) | 1 | ₹1.2 lakh |
| Storage tank (100 litres) | 1 | ₹0.8 lakh |
| Feed pump | 1 | ₹0.25 lakh |
| Filter press (100 litres) | 1 | ₹0.7 lakh |
| Homogeniser (100 litres/hr) | 1 | ₹2.3 lakh |
| Steam kettle (100 litres/hr) | 1 | ₹1.7 lakh |
| Boiler (50 kg/hr) | 1 | ₹1.5 lakh |
| Pasteuriser (100 litres/hr) | 1 | ₹1.6 lakh |
| Carbonation unit | 1 | ₹0.7 lakh |
| Filling and capping machine (500 bottles/hr) | 1 | ₹2.7 lakh |
| Compressor | 1 | ₹0.6 lakh |
| Weighing balance | 1 | ₹0.06 lakh |
| Accessories | 1 | ₹0.5 lakh |
From: NIFTEM-Thanjavur (IIFPT) PMFME model DPR — Orange RTS
- Oranges₹13 a kg in the DPR; 30% juice recovery; 0.9 kg for 1 kg of drink
- Sugarfor the syrup
- Bottles, caps and labelspacking material
§5Licences & registration
- Udyam registration
- GST registration
- FSSAI licence or registration
- Trade licence or factory permission from the local body
- Legal Metrology registration for packaged goods
Start it in your state
Pick your state: today’s cost, central + state subsidy, raw material, land and help, on one page.
§6Schemes & subsidies
- PMFMECentralUnclear35% subsidy, up to ₹10 lakh
- PMEGPCentralActive15–35% subsidy
- MudraCentralActiveLoan up to ₹20 lakh, no collateral
- CGTMSECentralActiveNo collateral, up to ₹10 crore
At this size the project fits PMFME (35% credit-linked grant, up to ₹10 lakh) or PMEGP (manufacturing up to ₹50 lakh) — choose one subsidy; MUDRA or a CGTMSE-backed loan can cover the working capital.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Building 20 × 32 × 12 ft ₹5.18 L + plant and machinery ₹22.91 L + utilities ₹0.8 L + other fixed assets ₹0.9 L + pre-operative ₹0.90 L + contingencies ₹1.20 L + working capital margin. The Project at a Glance takes the margin as ₹0.25 L and prints a total of ₹32.14 L; section 2.10 takes the margin as ₹3.02 L and prints ₹34.91 L. Both totals are shown as the range.
Working capital: Working capital gap ₹12.08 L, ₹14.28 L and ₹19.47 L in years 2–4; margin money (25%) ₹3.02 L, ₹3.57 L and ₹4.87 L; bank finance ₹9.06 L, ₹10.36 L and ₹13.31 L as printed in the Project at a Glance.
Year not printed on the DPR (the PMFME scheme began in 2020) — check current machinery prices.
§8Export potential
Export council / board: APEDA
- The DPR prints no HS code — look up the exact code in the DGFT ITC-HS schedule before you quote to a foreign buyer.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Bitterness or off-flavour developing in storage
- Fruit shortage outside the season
- Price competition from national brands
- Low capacity use in the first years
§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 orange ready-to-serve drink unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
- Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, GST 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
§12Watch
There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.
Want to start Orange Ready-to-Serve Drink?
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.