How to Start a Plastic Food Container Manufacturing Business

Friends, if you are looking for a manufacturing business idea that you can start on a small scale, then plastic food container manufacturing could be a great opportunity. Yes, currently, more than 8 crore food containers are used every day in India, out of which, only 3.5 billion are food delivery orders. These plastic food containers are required by everything from restaurants to food delivery services to deliver them safely and without any breakage or leakage. Moreover, the demand for these containers is increasing in India. This creates a fantastic business opportunity for you, through which you can start a food container business in your city with a very modest investment and earn good profits today. So, in this article, we will guide to how to start a plastic food container business.

Market Scope of Business

First, let’s talk about why this business is growing so fast, friends, today India’s food delivery and takeaway industry is growing at a record pace, yes, it has crossed ₹1.4 lakh crore in market value. Yes, every day, millions of food containers are used by restaurants, catering businesses and grocery stores in India. From multi-cuisine joints to home delivery services, everyone needs safe, durable and affordable packaging. Moreover, with the growth of Swiggy, Zomato and cloud kitchens, the demand for plastic containers is increasing by 15 to 20% annually. Additionally, the demand for these plastic containers is increasing day by day not only in the food industry but also in FMCG and dairy products, so it has become a high-demand business.

Space for Business

Regarding the space required for this business, a relatively small area is sufficient to run the plant on a small scale. An area of approximately 1000 to 1200 square feet is sufficient. On the other hand, a larger operation may require more space. Also, talking about manpower, you may need an operator and two assistants to take care of packaging and material movement. And most importantly, you need an uninterrupted three-phase connection to run your production machinery.

License and Permits for Business

Friends, one of the most important licenses to start a plastic food container manufacturing business in India is the FSSAI license, as it is directly related to food products. Apart from this, you will also need GST registration, MSME registration and a trade license. Apart from that, since it is an industrial unit, it is mandatory to obtain a No Objection Certificate from the Pollution Control Board and the Fire and Safety Department. And this is just a general set of licenses, and more licenses may be required, so you can find out more by consulting your nearest business consultant.

Required Raw Materials

Now, let’s discuss the raw materials required for this industry. First of all, the primary raw materials for this business are food grade plastic pellets such as polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). This is because these types of raw materials can be used in food contact, are lightweight and recyclable. Additionally, you can add color masterbatches if you want to make other colored containers. And these food-grade plastic pellets in India are available at various prices based on grades and can be obtained from local polymer merchants or large dealers on B2B platforms like IndiaMart or Alibaba.

Required Machine and Molds

Friends, the main equipment you need for this plastic food container manufacturing can be purchased in two types depending on the type of containers you plan to make. Yes, injection molding is best for a thick, reusable container, while thermoforming works for disposable containers. Talking about molds, you definitely need at least two or three molds in 250 ml, 500 ml, 750 ml and 1 liter sizes. Apart from this, you need some auxiliary equipment like chiller, air compressor, over dryer, system, grinder etc. to run this entire plant. You can buy these from manufacturers in your machinery place or through platforms like IndiaMART and TradeIndia.

Investment for Business

Talking about the investment for this business, your initial investment for a small and medium unit will be around 30 to 50 lakhs depending on how many moulds you buy, which machine you buy, and what quality of raw materials you buy. Also, this budget includes initial marketing expenses and running expenses such as electricity, restocking of raw materials, and packaging for distribution. Friends, this investment amount is only an estimate, because, raw material and machine prices can change at any time. Therefore, consulting a good business consultant can help you know more about this business.

Making Process of Plastic Food Container

The process is very simple, first you need to feed the raw material of PP through the hopper dryer inside the injection molding. Then, the machine heats and melts the plastic, then this molten material is injected into the mold with high pressure and the plastic mold takes the desired container shape. After this, the mold is cooled and the product of the final shape is injected. After this, the final step is trimming, trimming and testing for quality. Finally, if required, you can customize the containers by printing your customer’s brand name or adding labels. Generally, in practice, even a small system can produce thousands of containers per day, but this depends on the productivity of your machine and the volume of the product you are producing.

Where to sell your products

As we said earlier, the demand for these plastic containers is increasing day by day as they are used not only in food but also in FMCG and dairy products. So, first, you can start by selling your containers directly to restaurants, cloud kitchens, catering services and grocery stores in your city. Next, you can also offer bulk orders to food delivery service providers and wholesalers. Then importantly, online marketplaces like IndiaMART, TradeIndia and Amazon Business can connect you with wholesale buyers across India, so you can list your plastic containers there. Apart from that, networking with local B2B WhatsApp groups and packaging suppliers will help you get orders faster. Friends, finally, if you focus on quality, food safety and competitive pricing, you will get repeat orders and keep your production running throughout the year.

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