The 60-second answer
At rate card v2.92, MushroomWale's EPC scope for a commercial button mushroom farm runs from Rs 11.7 lakh for one 18×40 ft room (53 kg/day) to Rs 3.42 crore for 20 × 18×70 ft rooms with 4 × 30 T compost units (2,000 kg/day), ex-GST and excluding land, civil works and working capital. The 100 kg/day tier (two 18×40 ft rooms, compost bought in) is Rs 22.2 lakh and pays back its quotation in about 32 months at Rs 120/kg; a 200 kg/day farm with its own 20 T compost unit pays back in about 20 months. Spawn labs are not commercially required below 1,000 kg/day; compost units are not required below 200 kg/day where reliable external compost supply exists.
What this index covers, and what it deliberately leaves out
This index publishes the price band a buyer should expect for the EPC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction) scope of a turnkey mushroom farm. We exclude five cost categories on purpose:
- Land cost — varies 1,000× across India and is not in our scope of supply
- Civil works — RCC foundation, plinth, drainage, boundary wall: client scope
- Working capital — first-cycle compost, spawn, casing, packaging, electricity deposit, salaries
- GST — 18% on the EPC contract
- Statutory and bank charges — bank loan processing, insurance, registration
A buyer should plan total project cost as: EPC + 18% GST + civil works + working capital + land. Our DPR Bank reports carry the full project cost the bank sees for each configuration.
Capex by capacity
EPC scope at rate card v2.92: PUF rooms, cooling, air handling, racks and additional works and the compost unit(s), ex-GST, ex-civil, ex-land, ex-working capital. Each row is a configuration from our DPR Bank.
| Daily output | Grow rooms | Compost | EPC scope | Cost / kg/day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 kg/day | 1 × 18×40 ft | Bought in | Rs 11.7 lakh | Rs 22,000 |
| 106 kg/day | 2 × 18×40 ft | Bought in | Rs 22.2 lakh | Rs 20,900 |
| 212 kg/day | 4 × 18×40 ft | 1 × 20 T | Rs 49.7 lakh | Rs 23,400 |
| 530 kg/day | 10 × 18×40 ft | 1 × 30 T | Rs 1.16 crore | Rs 21,900 |
| 1,000 kg/day | 10 × 18×70 ft | 2 × 30 T | Rs 1.72 crore | Rs 17,200 |
| 2,000 kg/day | 20 × 18×70 ft | 4 × 30 T | Rs 3.42 crore | Rs 17,100 |
The non-obvious story in this curve
Most "mushroom farm cost" content on the Indian web assumes a smooth scale-economy curve — bigger means cheaper per unit. The validated data tells a different story:
Component split, by capex share
For the 100 kg/day farm (two 18×40 ft rooms, compost bought in), the EPC bill of Rs 22.2 lakh divides like this, straight from the quotation's sections:
| Component | Capex share |
|---|---|
| PUF-panel grow rooms, doors and installation (PPGL, 80/60 mm walls) | 36.6% |
| Daikin cooling, installed and commissioned | 30.4% |
| Air handling: ducting, mixing box, dampers, filters | 4.8% |
| MS racks and additional works (wiring, water, flashing) | 28.1% |
A compost unit adds Rs 6.5 lakh (20 T) or Rs 7.1 lakh (30 T) ex-GST per unit. Naayom climate automation is quoted separately; a spawn lab, where one is justified, is priced per project.
Refrigeration brand choice: MushroomWale grow rooms ship with one of two authorised systems — Daikin HMT-class split units on R32 / R410A (default, all sizes), or Carrier (Haier-CCR) commercial refrigeration on R-404a (available on 18×40, 18×60 and 18×70 ft rooms). Both are BTU-matched for the 16–18°C / 85–95% RH duty of a mushroom grow room.
ROI snapshot, 100 kg/day farm
The same cost model as every calculator on this site: Rs 120/kg farm-gate, 2 kg a bag, 6 crops a year, compost bought in.
| Line | Annual figure |
|---|---|
| Output: 2 rooms × 3,200 kg a crop × 6 crops | 38,400 kg |
| Revenue at Rs 120/kg farm-gate | Rs 46.1 lakh |
| Production cost at Rs 94.4/kg (bought-in compost, power, labour, packaging, misc.) | Rs 36.2 lakh |
| Yearly margin | Rs 9.8 lakh |
| Quotation total incl. 18% GST (sections A–F) | Rs 26.2 lakh |
| Payback on the quotation total | 32 months |
With its own 20 T compost unit, a 200 kg/day farm pays back its quotation in about 20 months. Subsidy: MIDH pays 40% of the cost norm for private growers (50% in NE and Himalayan states and other notified areas): up to Rs 12 lakh for the growing rooms, Rs 12 lakh for a compost unit and Rs 8 lakh for a spawn unit, credit-linked and back-ended. NHB's integrated mushroom unit pays 35% (45% in enhanced areas) of Rs 75,000 per MT, for units above 50 and up to 300 MT a year. NHB and MIDH are a choice, never a stack. NABARD refinances the bank and pays no subsidy. See the subsidy guide.
What you'll need to add (operational disclosures)
Below 200 kg/day, the EPC scope above does not include a Phase-2 compost unit. Below 1,000 kg/day, it does not include a spawn lab. Both are commercially viable as buy-in arrangements, but only in specific regions of India.
Reliable compost buy-in zones
- • Solan and surrounding Himachal corridor
- • Sonipat and the NCR corridor
- • Pune and surrounding Maharashtra corridor
- • Hyderabad and Telangana
Supply-thin zones (plan in-house compost)
- • Most of Odisha
- • Eastern UP, Bihar, and Jharkhand
- • Most of West Bengal outside Kolkata
- • North-East states
- • Most of MP outside Bhopal–Indore
Zone classification reflects supply realities as of September 2026 and shifts as new commercial compost units come online.
What changed in this edition
- Daikin HMT-class condensing units are the standard grow-room specification at rate card v2.92; Carrier remains available on 18×40, 18×60 and 18×70 ft rooms.
- Naayom range revised on 26 September 2026: Phase-1 bunkers now run on NWC 3000A (one per bunker) or NWC 3000M (monitoring, up to three bunkers), and NWC 800 joins as an on/off grow-room controller. 18% GST extra.
- PPGL 0.4 mm PUF-panel pricing revised to Rs 1,535/sqm (60 mm wall), Rs 1,750/sqm (80 mm wall), Rs 1,875/sqm (roof) — rate card 2.92, effective 2026-10-10.
- Sonipat compost supply tightening — ex-Solan dispatch prices are above 2025 averages on the back of straw cost increases.
Buyer FAQs
How much does a 100 kg per day mushroom farm cost in India in 2026?
Rs 22.2 lakh for MushroomWale's EPC scope (2 × 18×40 ft rooms, compost bought in), ex-GST, at rate card v2.92. Land, civil works and working capital are extra; our DPR Bank puts the bank's total project cost for this farm at Rs 56.3 lakh. At Rs 120/kg the quotation total pays back in about 32 months.
Is mushroom farming profitable in India?
On our cost model (Rs 120/kg, 2 kg a bag, 6 crops a year), a 100 kg/day farm buying compost makes about Rs 9.8 lakh a year and pays back its quotation in about 32 months. A 200 kg/day farm with its own 20 T compost unit makes about Rs 35.6 lakh a year and pays back in about 20 months, because own compost cuts production cost from Rs 94.4 to Rs 73.6 a kilo.
What is the smallest commercially viable mushroom farm in India?
One 18×40 ft room (about 50 kg per day) is the floor. Below this, per-kilo overhead erodes margin. Two rooms (about 100 kg per day) is the most common starter scale for PMEGP and bank loans.
Do I need a spawn lab for a commercial mushroom farm?
Not below 1,000 kg per day. Spawn supply from approved national vendors is reliable. Above that, an in-house spawn lab can pay for itself; we price it per project.
Do I need a compost unit for a commercial mushroom farm?
Below 200 kg per day, no, provided the farm is in a region with reliable Phase 2 compost supply such as Solan, Sonipat NCR, Pune corridor, or Hyderabad. At 200 kg per day and above, compost unit investment becomes economic.
What is the difference between Phase 1 and Phase 2 composting?
Phase 1 is aerated bunker composting from Day 3 to Day 9 of the 15–16 day compost cycle, after pre-wetting from Day 0 to Day 3, with the core at 70–78 °C. Phase 2 is 6–7 days in an insulated tunnel, from Day 9 to Day 15–16: 58–60 °C for 6–8 hours to pasteurise, then 45–50 °C conditioning until free ammonia is under 10 ppm, and cooling to 25 °C for spawning.
Which AC is used in mushroom farming?
Two authorised options. Daikin HMT-class split units on R32 / R410A (default for all room sizes), and Carrier (Haier-CCR) commercial refrigeration on R-404a (available for 18×40, 18×60 and 18×70 ft rooms). Both are sized for grow rooms operating at 16–18°C and 85–95% relative humidity.
How much subsidy is available for mushroom farming in India?
MIDH pays 40% of the cost norm for private growers (50% in NE and Himalayan states and other notified areas): up to Rs 12 lakh for the growing rooms, Rs 12 lakh for a compost unit and Rs 8 lakh for a spawn unit, credit-linked and back-ended. NHB's integrated mushroom unit pays 35% (45% in enhanced areas) of Rs 75,000 per MT, for units above 50 and up to 300 MT a year. NHB and MIDH are a choice, never a stack. NABARD refinances the bank and pays no subsidy. PMEGP gives 15–35% margin money on projects up to Rs 50 lakh, for compost units, spawn labs and processing.
What is the cost of a Phase 2 compost tunnel?
A complete compost unit (two aerated bunkers and a tunnel: air system, blowers, piping, panels, control panels and installation) is Rs 6.5 lakh ex-GST for 20 T and Rs 7.1 lakh ex-GST for 30 T, at rate card v2.92. Civil works for the bunkers, tunnel and slab are client scope.
How long does it take to build a 100 kg per day mushroom farm?
60–90 days from the advance and a ready site (plinth, power, water) to commissioning, the work cycle in our quotation. The first compost batch then takes 15–16 days before the rooms are filled.
Methodology and source
Compiled from MushroomWale's rate card v2.92 (Oct 2026): every EPC figure on this page comes from the same rate engine that prices our quotations (PUF panels, Daikin cooling, air handling, racks and additional works, compost units), and every capacity tier is a configuration from our DPR Bank. Each project is still priced on its own site. The index is republished whenever the rate card changes.
About the author
Mahendra Pal Singh is the Director of AgriMotion Engineering Pvt Ltd, the parent company of MushroomWale. AgriMotion has commissioned mushroom farm infrastructure for clients across Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and West Bengal since 2022. GSTIN: 09AAZCA0158R1ZP. Reviewed by Chirag Deep Singh, Program Head, MushroomWale.
