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AyRojgar

Ground spice packaging

Grinding and packing spices for sale. A BSTI CM licence is compulsory: lab testing alone is Tk 2,900-5,300 per product and the licence takes 19-94 working days.

  • Last reviewed: 19 September 2026
  • Version 1
Starting capital
৳1,20,000 – ৳7,00,000
Editorial estimate
Manpower
2 – 8 people
First sale
30 – 135 days
Editorial estimate
Break-even
6 – 10 months
Editorial estimate
Kind of work
Workshop · Hard

What the business is

Buying whole turmeric, chilli, coriander or cumin, grinding it, weighing it and selling it in sealed packets. The work looks simple; the barrier is paperwork, not machinery. Turmeric powder, chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and curry powder all sit on BSTI's mandatory certification list, so packing and selling them without a CM licence is an offence. Getting the licence means a separate lab test of a sample of each product, and that fee is what almost nobody costs out: turmeric powder Tk 4,600, chilli powder Tk 5,300, coriander powder Tk 3,100, cumin powder Tk 2,900 at ordinary speed. Start with four products and Tk 15,900 goes on testing alone, plus a Tk 1,000 application fee and an annual CM fee of 0.10 percent of ex-factory production value with a Tk 3,500 floor. BSTI's own service profile says the licence takes 19 to 94 working days, most products 19 to 34. On top of that, selling anything in a pack requires a packaged-commodity registration certificate under the Weights and Measures Standards Act 2018; trading without it carries a fine of up to Tk 20 lakh and up to five years in prison. Raw material on 15 September 2026 was local turmeric Tk 320-350, dried chilli Tk 320-380 and cumin Tk 550-650 per kg. One brand holds roughly 70 percent of the packaged market, so a newcomer's room is in neighbourhood bazaars and small eateries, not supermarket shelves.

Unit economics

ItemRangeEvidenceSuggest a correction
Monthly working capital৳1,00,000 – ৳6,00,000Editorial estimate
Selling price৳600 – ৳1,300 / kgEditorial estimate
Variable cost৳320 – ৳650 / kgOfficial source
Gross margin47% – 50%Editorial estimate
Time to first revenue30 – 135 daysEditorial estimate
Break-even time6 – 10 monthsEditorial estimate
Cash cycle20 – 60 daysEditorial estimate
Waste / loss5% – 12%Editorial estimate
Daily capacity30 – 200Editorial estimate

What you need to start

  • A spice mill, sieves, digital scales, a pack sealing machine and drying arrangements. Hand-held sealers start at Tk 870 and foil sealing machines run Tk 9,500-15,000; mill prices could not be verified here.Equipment
  • BSTI CM (Certification Marks) licence. Turmeric, chilli, coriander and cumin powder and curry powder are all on the mandatory list. New application fee Tk 1,000; renewal application fee is given as Tk 500 on one BSTI page and Tk 1,000 on another. Annual CM fee is 0.10 percent of ex-factory production value, minimum Tk 3,500, maximum Tk 35,00,000.Licence
  • Packaged-commodity registration certificate from BSTI's Metrology Wing under the Weights and Measures Standards Act 2018, required for anything sold in a pack. Selling without it carries a fine of up to Tk 20 lakh, up to five years in prison, or both. The fee could not be verified here.Licence
  • Bangladesh Food Safety Authority registration: Tk 1,000 new, Tk 500 renewal, valid three years. Compulsory for packaged food producers.Licence
  • Trademark registration certificate: an attested copy must go with the CM licence application, so the brand name has to be registered first.Licence
  • Trade licence from the city corporation or municipality: form Tk 10, licence book Tk 50, standard tax Tk 30, stamp Tk 150-300, licence fee Tk 100-60,000 by trade type, issued in 3-5 working days.Licence
  • Judging raw spice quality with the sack open, spotting moisture and insect damage. Get this wrong and the sample fails the lab, and the whole test fee is lost.Skill
  • A wholesale spice market: Moulvibazar and Rahmatganj in Dhaka, Khatunganj in Chattogram, plus separate suppliers for pouches, labels and foil.Supplier
  • Separate grinding, drying, packing and storage space. The BSTI inspector takes a sample only after checking that the factory's hygiene and environment match the Bangladesh Standard.Workspace

How the work runs

  1. 1Decide exactly which spices you will start with. Each product needs its own lab test and its own licence entry, so a longer list means a bigger bill.
  2. 2Take the trade licence from the city corporation or municipality with spice processing named on it, and get a TIN from NBR.
  3. 3Register your brand name as a trademark: BSTI's CM licence application requires an attested copy of the trademark certificate.
  4. 4Fix the premises with separate grinding, drying, packing and storage areas. A BSTI inspector visits and checks the factory's hygiene and environment first; if it does not match the standard, no sample is even taken.
  5. 5Apply to BSTI for the CM licence with the Tk 1,000 fee, a process flow diagram and a sample of the standard-compliant label.
  6. 6Keep the sample testing money aside: turmeric powder Tk 4,600, chilli powder Tk 5,300, coriander powder Tk 3,100, cumin powder Tk 2,900 at the normal 14 working day speed. Urgent testing costs double.
  7. 7Take the packaged-commodity registration certificate from BSTI's Metrology Wing. It is a separate thing from the CM licence and is required the moment you sell in a pack.
  8. 8Register with the Food Safety Authority: Tk 1,000 for a new registration, valid three years, Tk 500 to renew.
  9. 9Fix where you buy. In Dhaka it is the Moulvibazar and Rahmatganj wholesale spice markets, in Chattogram it is Khatunganj. You have to learn to buy with the sack opened.
  10. 10Put weight, manufacturing and expiry dates, batch number and the BSTI standard mark on the label. A mobile court checks the label first.
  11. 11Start selling through neighbourhood grocery shops and rice hotels. The money a big store wants for shelf space is not payable at the start.
  12. 12Put the annual CM fee and the licence renewal date on a calendar. Once it lapses even stock already packed becomes illegal.

Seasons

  1. JanHigh
  2. FebHigh
  3. MarHigh
  4. AprNormal
  5. MayHigh
  6. JunNormal
  7. JulNormal
  8. AugNormal
  9. SepNormal
  10. OctNormal
  11. NovHigh
  12. DecHigh
HighNormalLow

Where it fits

  • Strong fitChattogram · Khatunganj is the country's largest wholesale spice market and the import gateway, and BSTI has a regional office here.
  • Strong fitDhaka · The Moulvibazar and Rahmatganj wholesale spice markets are here, and so are BSTI's head office and laboratories, so samples do not have to travel.
  • Strong fitGazipur · Dhaka's factory belt: cheaper space, available labour, and the Dhaka wholesale market an hour away.
  • PossibleBarishal · A BSTI regional office, but most raw material has to come from outside the district.
  • PossibleBogura · The northern trading hub with chilli and turmeric grown nearby, though raids and fines on colour-adulterated spice units here mean closer scrutiny.
  • PossibleKhulna · A BSTI regional office, and access to the southern markets.
  • PossibleNarayanganj · Pouch, foil and label printing works are close by, and so is the Dhaka market.
  • PossibleRajshahi · A BSTI regional office means the licence work can be done locally.
  • PossibleSylhet · A BSTI regional office, and remittance households with the spending power to buy branded spice.

Risks and cautions

  • HighCompliance: You cannot legally sell packets without the licence, and the licence takes 19 to 94 working days. Costs run through that whole stretch with no income. If a sample fails the lab you pay again: Tk 4,600 each time for turmeric powder, Tk 5,300 for chilli. Four products means Tk 15,900 in testing before a single packet is sold.
  • HighCompliance: Mixing in colour and husk is this trade's oldest habit and mobile courts now raid regularly. Selling without the packaged-commodity registration carries up to Tk 20 lakh in fines and up to five years in prison under the Weights and Measures Standards Act 2018, and once a unit is sealed the licence goes with it.
  • HighDemand: One brand holds around 70 percent of the packaged spice market and a handful of large companies share the rest (a 2021 figure, which may have moved since). A new name that wants supermarket shelf space is asked for listing money a small producer does not have, so sales stay confined to neighbourhood grocers and eateries.
  • MediumWorking capital: Cumin is Tk 550-650 a kg and spice prices swing with the season. Without the cash to buy in the cheap months you have to raise the pack price when they rise, which is hard when the price is already printed on the label.
  • MediumLate payment: Grocers and wholesalers take stock on credit and pay when the next delivery comes, returning what did not sell. A return inside the expiry date is survivable; one past it is a total loss.

Sources

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