How To Start Honey Processing Plant

 Is Honey Processing Profitable? 

• Honey is an essential ingredient in various food recipes. There is considerable demand for honey and other products. There are so many food processing industries that use honey as the major sweetening agent. The list includes bakery, confectionery, candy, marmalades, jams, spreads, breakfast cereals, beverages, milk products, and many preserved products.
• It also has vast applications in the pharmaceutical industry. In addition, honey is an important ingredient in the organic or herbal cosmetics industry. Generally, the people who are in the dieting process prefer honey as a food-sweetening item. With changing lifestyles and increasing health consciousness, honey is
  been increasingly consumed as healthy food. That is why the demand for honey in the domestic market is increasing rapidly.
• Apart from the domestic market, processed honey has a sustainable demand in the foreign market. In addition, the demand for organic honey is also increasing. Some of the major honey importing countries are Germany, United States, United Kingdom, France, Japan, and Italy. China is the world-leading producer as well as exporter of honey.

Seven steps to follow to start a profitable Honey Processing business

Here are the 7 steps to follow to start a profitable Honey Processing business:

• Create a Business Plan

• Choose a Location for Honey Processing Factory

• Name your Honey Processing Business

• Make the Business Legally Compliant

• Plant Set Up & Machinery & for Honey Processing 

• Honey Manufacturing Process

• Promote your Products

 

1.  Create a Business Plan

• A business plan is the key to success for any business. Any type of manufacturing business demands a lot of essential considerations before commencing the venture. In starting this business, you must consider the easy availability of raw honey continuously in your factory. So, you have to check whether the location is perfect for the business or not.
• Check the local market first. You must do a market survey before starting the business. Identify the demand for bulk supply. In addition, try to analyze the local market demand for processed and branded honey. A brief market survey will help you in crafting the business plan.
• According to your investment capacity and skill, determine the business size. If you are an absolute beginner in this industry, it is advisable to start as small. As your business grows you can scale up the business at any moment of time.
• In this business, there is no other ancillary product you can produce. However, you can increase the product range with several other food products. Generally, you need to consider several different aspects of this business. The list includes:

1. Executive Summary
2. Management Description
3. Market Analysis
4. Organizing & Management
5. Product Line
6. Fixed Capital & Working Capital Investment
7. Financial Projection
8. Funding Request
9. Marketing & Sales Promotion Strategy

2.  Choose a Location for Honey Processing Plant

• Find a location, where distribution cost is low. The location should be nearer to the suppliers who will supply raw materials to your plant. It also should not be too far from the immediate market where you will be supplying finished goods.
• Choosing a suitable location for your Honey processing plant is a very important factor that can determine how successful and profitable the business grows. Selection of the right location is one of the crucial aspects of establishing honey manufacturing units. Plus, individuals have to take the utilities (such as electricity, water supply, etc.) to run the company. Consider the production volume and unit size when deciding the location for the project. 

3. Name your Honey Processing Business

Select a name that people can relate to your Honey processing company. Do not forget to check the availability of a similar domain name to the company name. This helps you in creating a website similar to the company name.

4.  Make the Business Legally Compliant

• he following permits and registrations are required to set up a Honey Processing Unit:

1. Registration of Firm: The first step to start any type of industry is incorporating your own firm. Additionally, it is always beneficial to incorporate a One Person Company at the initial stage of your business
2. Trade License: You need to take the Trade license from your local state authority
3. FSSAI License: Honey is a category of the item under the food industry. Therefore, you need to take the FSSAI license to be able to work with honey, in any manner. Also, you need to comply with the provisions of the Food Prevention Act
4. GST Registration: It is mandatory to obtain GST Registration if your turnover is above the specified limit
5. Import Export Code: You got to obtain the Import Export Code if you are planning to export honey from your bee farm.
6. Bureau of  Indian Standards – BIS Certification: You would also need to take the BIS Certification.

5.  Honey Processing Plant Setup & Machinery

• First of all, you have to secure a location for the production unit. Generally, a 1000 Sq. feet area is sufficient for a small-scale processing unit. Additionally, you will need to have a testing laboratory with a unit. However, if you are starting a shoestring budget, then you can consider using other laboratories for testing purposes.
• Before finalizing the unit location, check the electricity and water availability. In addition, the location must have an available transport facility. Generally, a honey processing unit includes 4 key modules. These are collection center, processing zone, bottling with packaging unit, and warehouse.
• Some of the major required machines are:

1. Heating, filtering, and storage tank
2. Gravity Clarifiers
3. Honey filters
4. Extractors
5. Draining Trays
6. Bottling and sealing machine
7. Storage tanks

• In addition, you have to procure some measuring and testing equipment.

6.  Honey Manufacturing Process

• Generally, a modern honey processing plant produces processed honey in an automatic process. The steps include procuring raw honey, filtering, and packaging. However, quality control and standardization of honey are essential for selling in the international market.
• For export to European Union (EU) and some other countries, it’s mandatory to control the level of pesticides and insecticidal residue in the finished product. Furthermore, some countries insist on a certificate validating the purchase of honey from the disease-free colony.
• The industry of honey is not a simple sequential chain of processing operations, although the normal consumer may consider it in this way, at first sight. It should be noted that each processing step, from the initial extraction to the packaging of the final food product, is the answer to peculiar problems concerning the physicochemical and biological features of different honeys. 
• After the initial harvest, the material (e.g. honeycombs, frames) is introduced into the so-called honey extractor: a container able to remove honey by means of the centrifugal force. The operation has to be carried out into special rooms, with possibility of heating. At the exit from the extractor, the honey is (a) collected by gravity in tanks placed often on the floor (wax is separated from honey) and (b) sent to the decanters with the aid of pumps from the same floor. The extraction must be performed by a desired degree of purification with the aim of eliminating wax particles and air bubbles, which are possibly mixed with honey during extraction.
• The purification is carried out with two different techniques: decanting and filtration. By the safety viewpoint, it should also be considered that extraction procedure (with the collection and other processing steps) may affect negatively the quality of produced honeys, with special reference to honey for medical purposes. Consequently, physicochemical and microbiological features of the final product can be assured on condition that a certain number of precautionary measures are taken before the final commercialization. The processed honey is immediately bottled in clean wide mouthed bottles. It is then sealed by PP Caps. Bottles are wiped dry and labelled. Filled, sealed & labeled bottles are then packed in labeled cardboard boxes.

7.  Promote your Products

• This is one of the most crucial aspects to consider in starting a honey processing business. And to set the goal, you must identify your target demographic. Additionally, you have to concentrate on both retail and institutional selling. Establishing a wide distributor network is just essential in this business. And you also need to offer some schemes to enhance the sell.
• A small-scale honey processing business is a lucrative opportunity for new entrepreneurs. However, you must initiate the business in a proper way to get long-term success in this business.