§1What this business is

Yam is washed, sliced, dried and ground to powder, then mixed with chocolate, sugar and milk, formed into small drops, baked or set, and packed in 1 kg packs. Bakers use them like chocolate chips. The model unit has a machine capacity of 100 kg a day and works from rented premises.

Capacity: 100 kg a day for 300 days; 28,500 kg a year after 5% wastage. Use rises from 70% in year 1 (19,950 kg) to 90% in year 5 (25,650 kg).

§2Is it right for you?

Who it is for

A bakery-ingredient or confectionery maker willing to build a market for a new product.

Who it is not for

Someone who wants a product with ready, proven demand.

Advantages

  • A new product with little direct competition
  • No building cost — runs from rented space
  • Adds value to yam, a low-priced tuber

Drawbacks

  • Buyers do not know the product yet
  • Chocolate needs cool storage and careful handling
  • Modest profit — ₹3.76 L in the first year

Skills you need

  • Drying and milling yam into fine powder
  • Chocolate melting, mixing and forming
  • Temperature control in storage
  • Selling to bakeries and online

Why difficulty 3/5: Small plant, but chocolate handling and creating demand for a new product take skill.

§3Market

Who buys

  • Bakeries and home bakers
  • Dessert and ice-cream makers
  • Snack shoppers

How it sells

  • Bakery-ingredient suppliers
  • Supermarkets and speciality stores
  • Online marketplaces

Good to know

  • The DPR sells at ₹250 a kg in year 1 and raises the price 5% a year.

§4Raw material & machinery

ItemQtyCost
Washer—₹50,000
Tray dryer—₹1,20,000
Pulveriser—₹80,000
Weighing balance—₹5,000
Planetary mixer—₹3,00,000
Stainless steel table—₹40,000
Oven—₹2,50,000
Vertical form fill seal (VFFS) machine—₹3,00,000
Packaging machine—₹3,50,000
Roller and moulds—₹25,000
Miscellaneous machinery cost—₹80,000

From: NIFTEM-Thanjavur (IIFPT) PMFME model DPR — Yam Choco Drops

  • Yam paste or powdermade in-house from fresh yam
  • Chocolate, sugar and milkaverage raw material cost ₹105 a kg in year 1
  • 1 kg packets28,500 packets a year at full output

From: NIFTEM-Thanjavur (IIFPT) PMFME model DPR — Yam Choco Drops

§5Licences & registration

  1. Udyam registration
  2. GST registration
  3. FSSAI licence or registration
  4. Trade licence from the local body
  5. Legal Metrology registration for packed goods

We can do this registration for you

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 DPR is written for the PMFME scheme and assumes a subsidy of ₹5.95 L, a term loan of ₹9.35 L and a working capital loan of ₹5.00 L. The project is within PMEGP's ₹50 lakh manufacturing ceiling; MUDRA and CGTMSE can support the loan.

§7Money

How the investment is worked out: Total project cost ₹22.56 L = machinery and equipment ₹15.00 L + miscellaneous fixed assets ₹2.00 L (generator or inverter, furniture, electrical fittings) + working capital ₹5.56 L. No land or building cost — the premises are rented.

Working capital: Working capital need ₹5.60 L (15 days of raw material and finished goods plus 25 days of debtors, less 15 days of creditors); bank limit ₹5.00 L and own margin ₹0.56 L.

Year not printed on the DPR (the PMFME scheme began in 2020) — check current machinery prices.

How to prepare a loan file

§8Export potential

Export council / board: APEDA

  • The DPR prints no HS code or export figure — confirm the ITC-HS code on the DGFT site before you quote to a foreign buyer.

§9Risks — where people fail

  • Slow uptake of an unfamiliar product
  • Cocoa and chocolate price rises
  • Drops melting or blooming in summer

§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 yam choco drops unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
  2. Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, GST 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

§12Watch

There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.

Want to start Yam Choco Drops?

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

Get a DPR / loan file made

Sources

  1. NIFTEM-Thanjavur (IIFPT) PMFME model DPR — Yam Choco Drops

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