Tomato Processing Plant

Business Plan [Sample Template

for 2023]
re you about starting a tomato processing plant? If YES, here is a complete sample
tomato processing business plan template & feasibility report you can use for FREE.
Okay, so we have considered all the requirements for starting a tomato processing
business. We also took it further by analyzing and drafting a sample tomato processing
business marketing plan template backed up by actionable guerrilla marketing ideas for
tomato processing businesses. So let’s proceed to the business planning section.
It is a known fact that tomatoes are used all over the world and it is a cheap and affordable
staple for all classes of people.
We have been told that tomatoes are rich in fiber, they contain healthy vitamins and have
no trace of cholesterol. Tomatoes are also known to contain disease fighting photo-
chemicals. Most people like to consume tomato in its raw state as fruit, or after it have been
processed in foods and juices.
These precious fruits are also used for the preparation of various menu like; salads, drinks,
pizza, tomato soups and sauces et al. Residing in a country where tomatoes are produced
in large quantities actually means that you can establish your own tomato processing plant
and build it to become a world class business.
When starting a tomato processing plant, you would require a huge start-up capital, but the
good news is that the market for processed tomato products is very huge and profitable.
One of the numerous advantages of starting a tomato processing plant is that you can build
your plant in any part of the world where you can get tomato plants easily and with cheaper
labour and then sell them to the world.
Without much waste of time, the sole end products from an ideal tomato processing plant
are the popular ketchup, tomato juice, diced tomatoes, tomato powder, tomato paste,
tomato pulp, strained tomatoes, partially dehydrated tomatoes et al; which are very much
needed in our world. Here is a sample business plan template for you to go through.

A Sample Tomato Processing Plant

Business Plan Template
1. Industry Overview
Just as we stated above, tomato processing plants produce tomato paste, puree, ketchup,
juice and sauce. It is important to note that the manufacturing process is made up of the
most modern technology of vacuum evaporation through the use of forced circulation
evaporators/scrapped surface evaporators.
Also evaporation plants are versatile in nature and can concentrate other juices also. These
awesome fruits are used in very huge quantities in the fresh state, as canned tomatoes, and
in the form of canned juice, puree, paste, ketchup and sauce. Tomato ketchup and sauce
have got a mixed taste of sweet and sour.
They can also be very refreshing and help in increasing appetite. Tomatoes are very good
source of vitamin C for our body needs. We all know that the demand for tomato products is
increasing day by day. This shows a glowing future for new entrepreneurs and as well as
existing manufacturers.

2. Executive Summary
First Inland Plants, FIF is a Limited Liability Company based in Fresno, California. It is a
business set up with a clear, dedicated and committed vision, to excel and grow into one of
the best Agro based industries in California which has taken advantage of the abundant raw
materials produced to create goods for export. FIF has its Head office at 3419 Brown
Avenue Fresno, a 100 acre site where the proposed plant will be built.
We also have acquired recently a 50,000 hectares plant land in the same region for
cultivating of tomato and orange. Our processing plant we believe will be run by a team of
experts that include Mr. Jeffery Madeleine as the General Manager.
It is also important to note that FIF is registered with an authorized share of 100,000 with a
value of $1.67 per share. We at FIF believe that our plant will have tomato processing
capacity of about 1,500 tons per day between the months of October and April of the year
2018.
We at FIF plan to make arrangements for skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled manpower, raw
materials and plant housing as necessary for the success of our business. We also believe
that our interested partner will provide funding for machinery, skilled manpower, take-off
capital, among other things.
Our management will jointly organise for marketing of manufactured tomato paste. This
business is the sole dream and arrangement of four friends who have enjoyed
immeasurable connection and success in the agro processing industry. These individuals,
Jeffrey Madeleine, Constance Kiki, Wilfred Carlos and Steve Cornwall have been friends for
at least 23 years and they are bringing their different experiences into this unique business.

3. Our Products and Services

We at FIF believe that we will produce quality canned Tomato paste, Tomato Ketchup and
orange juice for local consumption and for export. It is our hope at FIF to provide excellent
customer service for its customers and suppliers.
FIF will also produce these products, and export 70% of the products directly from the
united states, to our neighbouring countries. We believe that the United States will also gain
from foreign exchange earnings and added value for its rotten produce which would have
gone to waste. Listed below are the products we wish to provide at FIF;
  Tomato Paste
 Tomato Ketchup
 Tomato juice and sauce
 Dried tomatoes
 Tomato powder
 Orange juice

4. Our Mission and Vision Statement

 Our vision at FIF is to become one of the leading ventures in the Agro Processing
industry in the whole world, starting from the United States.
 We at FIF have decided to provide a wide variety of processed tomato products to
United States citizens. We understand that the customer service we provide is
extremely important, because we want each customer to have a pleasant experience
with our goods, and it is the intention of our staff to answer questions with expertise
and to offer advice when we feel it is needed.

Our Business Structure

FIF has been a long-time dream of our four founding partners, and has been a project in the
making for nine years. We at FIF hope that our opening date will be within next year March,
and we dream of making our plant the leading figure in the industry.
We also plan to focus on providing quality tomato and orange products, which will give
nutrients and serve the various needs of our customers, who will cut across different phases
of life. Outlined below are the portfolios we wish to start FIF with:

 Chief Executive Officer

 HR and administrative Executive
 Accountant
 Plant Manager
 Plant worker(s)
 greenhouse worker
 Marketing and Sales Manager
 Security guard


6. SWOT Analysis
It is important to note that FIF is a standard Tomato processing plant that was set up to be
great and not as a trial and error, which is why conducting a proper SWOT Analysis became
a necessity and a must for us at FIF. We actually believe that getting our things right from
the start would mean that we have succeeded in laying the foundation that will help us
create a sustainable tomato processing plant.
We at FIF have plans of offering a large number of products and services to the people of
California, we have no plans for failure but a well situated plan that will help us to maximize
our strength and opportunities and also make our threat and weakness an advantage for us.
Properly explained below is a summary of the result of the SWOT analysis for FIF.

 Strength

According to our SWOT Analysis, the strength of FIF rests on the fact that we have created
and built a well based rapport with a handful of major players (agriculture merchants) in the
agro – allied industry; both suppliers and buyers within and outside of the United States.
Our management have also purchased some of the latest modern machines, tools and
equipment that will helps us manage our tomato processing plant. We also have the best
hands for the business in the whole industry.

 Weakness

The SWOT Analysis noted that the time it will take to gain customers and boost our brand
will be our major weakness at FIF. It explained the unimaginable competitive industry and
how industry players are keen on their advertising strategies.

 Opportunities

The opportunities that we at FIF have are the amount of people from the different walks of
life that will need our products in their daily lives and activities.

 Threat

One of the threats that was perceived during the SWOT Analysis is the probability of a
global economic downturn that will affect us negatively, bad weather cum natural disasters
(droughts, epidemics), unfavourable government policies, a new competitor in our location
and faulty machines.

MARKET ANALYSIS
 Market Trends

It’s a known fact in the industry that fresh tomato consumption overall has been stagnant
since mid-2000s. But interesting things are happening in the industry, both hothouse and
field-grown, across all North American markets. Farms in the United States, Canada and
Mexico are getting ready and arranging up their strengths to produce a variety of tomatoes
to meet consumer demand for flavour, convenience, interesting colours, sizes and shapes.
It is also important to note that the U.S. per capita consumption of tomatoes increased 5
pounds from 1985 to 2013, which can be accredited to increasing availability of hothouse
tomatoes in the industry.
Even though the hothouse tomato industry rose significantly for some time, more recent
producers have reported facing market saturation.
Hothouse round tomatoes and TOV [tomatoes on the vine] have matured, and all the
growth is coming in the snacking category. Estimate in the industry has shown a decline in
the total quantity (lbs) of tomatoes sold between 2009 and 2015.

But we believe there have been major changes in the product mix of tomatoes. One specie
eating up the revenues of another has been the major story instead of the new varieties
causing higher consumption of tomatoes overall.
It is also believed that tomato growers may also have opportunities as the food-service
industry has been pressured to add more non-animal proteins to their menus. These are
round tomatoes which are prized for their firmness and easy slicing attributes.

8. Our Target Market

We at FIF believe that our target market strategy will rest on making our business an
attractive choice for residents and retail outlets owners in the city of Fresno, California.
We believe that the target markets we are going to be chasing are the residential
consumers hoping to use our products for the organization consumption needs. We also
believe that the retail stores in the city will be attracted by our competitive prices and a
diverse inventory.
We at FIF know that individuals will want to shop at our location because of the superior
customer service we hope to provide, and we will love to experience a five to ten percent
increase in customers annually, and the profile of our customer consists of the following
demographic information:

 Male and Female.

 Married and Single.
 Combined annual income in excess of $50,000.
 Age range of 25 to 80 years, with a median age of 40.
 Retail outlets
 Vegetable export markets

Our competitive advantage

Our strategy at FIF is to profitably and efficiently make use of present and future agricultural
technology in the processing of tomatoes. We hope to build a profitable tomato processing
plant with all the necessary custom-innovated equipment, that will gain a significant industry
advantage. Our other competitive advantages include;

 Efficient production and utilizing greenhouses.

 No existing projects of this magnitude in Fresno, California
 Our founding members have or can boast of a unique experience in the vegetable
industry that goes back to 1998.
SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY
 Sources of Income

Just like we stated above in the product and service section, we will produce quality canned
tomato paste, tomato ketchup and orange juice, for local consumption and for export. We
hope to raise substantial income from the sales of products that we produce.
FIF will also produce these products, and export 70% of the product directly from the United
States, to our neighbouring countries. We believe that the United States will also gain from
foreign Exchange earnings. Listed below are the products we wish to gain income from at
FIF;

 Tomato Paste
 Tomato Ketchup
 Tomato juice and sauce
 Dried tomatoes
 Tomato powder
 Orange juice

10. Sales Forecast

We at FIF expect to have exceptional sales in the first year of operation. We believe that our
direct unit costs include the costs for the agricultural supply force who will produce the
tomatoes and oranges we process in our plant. These costs we believe are roughly 35% of
all direct costs each month. Our sales projections at FIF was analysed from two main
revenue streams: the general public, and the retail outlets.
We believe that our sales projections for the second year of operation will be based on a
modest growth rate for sales. We at FIF being a new tomato processing plant are projecting
a growth rate of 20%, believing our advertising will bring in new customers daily. Outlined
below is the sales projections of FIF:

 First Year-: $550,000

 Second Year-: $1,400,000
 Third Year-: $3,000,000

Note: it is worthwhile to note just like we stated above that this forecast was done based on
what is obtainable in the industry and with the believe that none of the threats we mentioned
above will be a hindrance or may likely appear.

 Marketing Strategy and Sales strategy

We at FIF will market and supply our unique products to our connected outlets aggressively,
focusing at first on local markets, and then on export options. We plan to emphasize the
reliable year-round output of our processing plant and hardworking workforce as well as our
ability to produce independent tomato products.
We at FIF understand how important marketing is in our industry. We understand the need
to reach our prospective customers and leverage all available sources, which is why we will
also eventually develop a website and advertise on the internet, although these future
marketing avenues are not included in this plan.

11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy

We at FIF hope that our marketing strategy will be based on giving the people the products
they need for the right price. Our management at FIF plan to maintain an extensive
marketing campaign that will ensure maximum visibility for the business in our targeted
market. Below is an overview of the publicity and advertising strategies for FIF:

 Establish relationships with landscape contractors within the target market.

 We hope to place adverts on both print (community based newspapers and
magazines) and electronic media platforms; we will also advertise FIF Consultants
on financial magazines, real estate and other relevant financial programs on radio
and TV.
 FIF will also sponsor relevant community based events/programs.
 We also plan to make use of various online platforms to promote the business.
Which will make it easier for people to enter our website with just a click of the
mouse. We will take advantage of the internet and social media platforms such as;
Instagram, Facebook , twitter, YouTube, Google + et al to promote our brand.
 We also plan to mount our Bill Boards on strategic locations all around Fresno,
California.
 We at FIF also plan to engage in road show from time to time.
 We also plan to distribute our fliers and handbills in target areas all around Fresno.
 We plan to make sure that all our workers wear our branded shirts and all our official
vehicles are well branded with our company’s logo et al.

12. Our Pricing Strategy

Our pricing strategy at FIF will be based on offering our customers expert service and
product knowledge, to build our marketing plan to reach diverse individuals and retailers,
while also maximizing profits.
FIF believe that to get the right pricing for our products, we need to make sure that we
choose a good location for our plant, choose our suppliers wisely, reduce the cost of
running our plant to the barest minimum and make sure we attract buyers to our business,
as against taking our products to the market to source for buyers.
With this, we would have successfully removed the cost of transporting the goods to the
market and other logistics from the equation.

 Payment Options

We at FIF after our extensive research and thorough discussion understand that different
customers prefer different payment options as it suits them at different times. We plan to
make sure that we provide them with payment options that will make their transactions less
stressful and very open. Listed below are the payment options we at FIF plan to make
available to our customers;

 Payment via bank transfer

 Payment with cash
 Payment via online bank transfer
 Payment via check
 Payment via bank draft
 Payment via POS

We have also chosen to partner with a known bank in the United States in order to give our
customers the best they can ever get in the agricultural sector of the United States.

13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)

We at FIF hope to maintain an average gross margin at or above 50%, generate an
average of $1,000 of sales each business day of each month, and realize an annual growth
rate of 10% in Year 2.
Our unique management believe that these objectives and goals are very much reachable,
which is the main reason why we are being very detailed about all information penned down
in our business plan. We have also decided on the possible factors to spend our start up
capital and they include:

 The price for incorporating our farm in United States of America – $750.
 Our budget for key insurance policies, permits and business license – $4,000
 The cost of acquiring/leasing our facility and land – $55,000
 The budget for preparing our plant– $25,000
 The price for acquiring the required working tools and equipment/machines/tractors
et al– $600,000
 The price of launching an official Website – $600
 The budget for paying our workers for 1 year – $500,000
 Other business requirements (Business cards, Signage, Adverts and Promotions et
al) – $2,000
 Miscellaneous – $5,000

From our detailed cost analysis above, we will need $1,192,350 to start FIF and make our
processing plant ready to serve the needs of our customers. Here also are the few
equipment we believe are necessary in starting FIF :

 TOMATO processing lines

 Equipment for tomato paste production
 Machinery for whole peeled tomatoes production
 Equipment for diced/pulp production
 Machinery for pasta/tomato sauces production
 Equipment for ketchup production
 Machinery for drinkable tomato juice production
 FRUIT processing lines
  VEGETABLES/FRESH CUT/EASYCUBE
 EVAPORATORS
 Twist SPIRAL solutions
 ASEPTIKA
 FLUID and SPIRAL FREEZING solutions
 JAM, MARMALADE, CANDYING/ BLENDING and FORMULATING

Generating Funding/Start-up Capital for FIF

We at FIF understand that having the required finance for your business will go a long way
to make sure you achieve your desired goal. Our management also understand that funds
are basically very crucial factors when it comes to building any business, and building a
successful business is not a one day job but a continuous job that requires consistency and
hard work.
FIF is a business owned by four partners and they hope to keep it that way with the funding
and decision making. Which is why they have decided to leave the means of generating
funds for the business in these following ways till further notice.

 Raising part of the start – up capital from personal savings

 Raising part of the start – up capital from family members and friends (soft loans and
gifts et al)
 Raising a larger chunk of the start-up capital from banks (loan facility).

14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy

FIF, just as we have stated above will be a partnership of successful businessmen
developing a small vision into a highly productive tomato processing plant. We at FIF plan
to be growing our own tomatoes in high-tech, multi-span greenhouses.
We hope to grow them in 15L bags with a medium used to support the root system. The
plants will automatically be fed nutrients through irrigation systems.
The plants will be grown in the best suitable growing conditions which allows each plant to
produce the maximum fruit possible. We will also plan to extend its time into a turf . The turf
will be irrigated via overhead spray units, using the run-off fertilizer from the multispan
tunnels.
This fertilizer is highly effective and will provide all the requirements the instant turf will
require. The turf will be cut and sold by the square meter, and is harvested with a sod
cutter. We plan to concentrate on the production of tomatoes, but will grow to peppers and
cucumbers with time.