1. Project Overview
Product: Tomato Purée (concentrated tomato pulp)
Form: Thick paste (12–28% TSS, depending on grade)
Raw Material: Fresh ripe tomatoes
End Use:
- Base for ketchup, soups, sauces, gravies
- Export for industrial food processors
- Retail under own brand
Capacity Example: 1,000 kg/day finished purée (≈10–12 tons tomatoes/day)
Shelf Life: 6–12 months (with proper pasteurization and packaging)
2. Market Potential
- India’s tomato production exceeds 20 million tons annually.
- Purée demand is growing from food industries, hotels, and exports.
- Global importers prefer Indian purée due to strong flavor & color.
- Purée is less perishable than fresh tomatoes — stabilizing farmer income and enabling year-round processing.
Target buyers:
- Ketchup, sauce, and ready-to-eat food manufacturers
- Institutional buyers (HoReCa)
- Exporters (bulk drums or aseptic packs)
3. Raw Materials
| Item | Source | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Fresh ripe tomatoes | Local farms / own production | Main raw material |
| Salt / Citric acid | Food preservative | Stability |
| Packaging (Cans / Aseptic bags / PET jars) | Packaging suppliers | Packing |
| Water | Borewell / municipal | Processing |
| Energy (Steam, power) | Industrial setup | Heating / running machinery |
4. Machinery & Equipment
| Equipment | Function | Approx. Cost (INR) |
|---|---|---|
| Tomato washer & sorter | Cleaning & grading | ₹1,00,000 |
| Crusher / pulper | Extract pulp from fruit | ₹1,50,000 |
| Steam jacketed kettle | Heating & concentrating pulp | ₹2,50,000 |
| Pulper-refiner | Remove seeds & skin | ₹1,00,000 |
| Evaporator (optional for thick purée) | Concentrate pulp | ₹3,00,000 |
| Pasteurizer | Sterilization | ₹80,000 |
| Filling & sealing machine | Packaging | ₹2,00,000 |
| Boiler / steam generator | Steam source | ₹2,00,000 |
| Miscellaneous (pumps, conveyors, tanks) | — | ₹1,00,000 |
Total Machinery Cost: ₹13–15 lakh (small scale, semi-automatic line)
5. Production Process
Step-by-Step:
- Sorting & Washing: Remove damaged fruits and dirt.
- Crushing: Break tomatoes to release juice and pulp.
- Blanching: Heat to loosen skin and inactivate enzymes.
- Pulp Extraction: Separate seeds, skin, and fiber using a pulper-refiner.
- Heating: Boil pulp to evaporate excess water and thicken consistency.
- Additives: Add salt/citric acid to enhance flavor and shelf life.
- Pasteurization: Heat at 85–90°C to kill microorganisms.
- Filling: Hot-fill into sterilized cans, bottles, or aseptic pouches.
- Cooling & Storage: Cool, label, and store at ambient temperature.
6. Plant Layout (Flow Chart)
Sorting → Washing → Crushing → Pulping → Heating/Concentrating →
Pasteurization → Filling → Cooling → Packing → Storage
7. Manpower Requirement
| Role | No. of People |
|---|---|
| Production Supervisor | 1 |
| Machine Operators | 2 |
| Helpers | 3 |
| Quality Control Staff | 1 |
| Packaging Workers | 2 |
| Admin / Sales | 1 |
Total: 9–10 staff members
8. Quality & Regulatory Requirements
- FSSAI License
- BIS IS 3882:1995 (Specification for Tomato Purée and Paste)
- MSME/Udyam Registration
- Pollution Board Clearance
- HACCP / ISO 22000 (for export)
- APEDA Registration (for export buyers)
9. Financial Summary (Small-Scale Example)
| Item | Cost (INR) |
|---|---|
| Building & Utilities | ₹3–4 lakh/year (rented) |
| Machinery & Equipment | ₹13–15 lakh |
| Raw Material (monthly) | ₹3–4 lakh |
| Labor & Utilities | ₹1.5–2 lakh/month |
| Packaging & Marketing | ₹1 lakh/month |
| Working Capital | ₹5–6 lakh |
| Total Initial Investment: | ₹25–30 lakh |
Profit Margin: 25–35%
Break-even Period: 1.5–2 years
10. Packaging Options
| Pack Type | Size | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Aseptic bag-in-drum | 200–250 kg | Export / bulk buyers |
| Tin cans | 850 g / 3.1 kg | Institutional / HoReCa |
| Glass / PET bottles | 200 g / 500 g / 1 kg | Retail market |
| Sachets | 50–100 g | Small consumers / sampling |
11. Marketing Strategy
B2B (Domestic):
- Supply to ketchup and sauce manufacturers
- Food processors, hotels, and frozen food suppliers
Export:
- Bulk tomato purée in aseptic drums for Africa, Middle East, Asia
- Private label packaging for international buyers
B2C:
- Own retail brand “Kolar Red Gold” purée packs
- Online (Amazon, Flipkart, own eCommerce site)
- Distributors, supermarkets, and food stores
12. Integration with Ketchup Line
If you plan both Purée + Ketchup,
you can:
- Use common pulping & boiling equipment
- Make purée as base product for ketchup — reducing cost by 30–40%
- Sell surplus purée in B2B/export markets
13. Sustainability Ideas
- Use tomato waste for compost or pectin extraction
- Solar dryers for producing tomato powder from byproducts
- Biodegradable or recyclable packaging