How to Start a Millet Processing Unit in India 2026: Process, Machines, Cost and Business Ideas

Key Takeaways

• India leads the world in millets. It produced 18.59 million tonnes in 2024-25, led by Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
• Processing is the gap. Small millets such as foxtail, kodo and little millet must be dehulled before people can cook them, and too few units do this well.
• Value-added sales are growing fast. Sales of millet products by PLI beneficiaries rose from ₹35 crore in 2020-21 to ₹814 crore in 2024-25.
• Primary processing machines are affordable. Small dehullers have been priced from well under ₹1 lakh to about ₹2 lakh, so a basic unit can start small and scale up.
• Schemes back millet processors. PMFME has supported 4,612 millet micro units, and the ₹800 crore PLI scheme for millet-based products covers ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat foods.