Mosquito coil manufacturing
A unit pressing mosquito coils from sawdust and insecticide. BSTI certification is compulsory and the Department of Environment will not clear a site in a residential area.
- Last reviewed: 19 September 2026
- Version 1
Mosquito coil manufacturing
- Starting capital
- ৳4,00,000 – ৳40,00,000 Editorial estimate
- Manpower
- 5 – 40 people
- First sale
- 90 – 270 days Editorial estimate
- Break-even
- 8 – 15 months Editorial estimate
- Kind of work
- Workshop · Hard
About the business
A unit that mixes sawdust, coconut coir powder and binder with insecticide and presses it into spiral coils. Demand runs all year in Bangladesh and multiplies in the dengue season. It is less simple than it looks, because a coil is a regulated product. Mosquito coil is item 39 on BSTI's mandatory certification list under standard BDS 1089:2018, third revision, so no coil can be put on the market without that certificate. The second obstacle is environmental. Because insecticide is used, a coil plant needs location clearance from the Department of Environment, and it is not given in a residential area. A proposed factory at Nayapur in Sonargaon, Narayanganj, shows what that means: after residents complained, the Department investigated repeatedly, found the area residential and cancelled the location clearance; an appeal restored it once and the next inspection cancelled it again. Get the site wrong and the whole investment sits idle. The price side is small: on Daraz on 16 September 2026 coils retailed at Tk 5-8 each. At that price the money comes only from volume and from cheap distribution.
Unit economics
| Item | Range | Evidence | Suggest a correction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly working capital | ৳3,00,000 – ৳35,00,000 | Editorial estimate | |
| Selling price | ৳5 – ৳8 / unit | Market quote | |
| Variable cost | ৳2 – ৳3 / unit | Editorial estimate | |
| Gross margin | 60% – 63% | Editorial estimate | |
| Time to first revenue | 90 – 270 days | Editorial estimate | |
| Break-even time | 8 – 15 months | Editorial estimate | |
| Cash cycle | 20 – 50 days | Editorial estimate | |
| Waste / loss | 3% – 8% | Editorial estimate | |
| Daily capacity | 5,000 – 50,000 | Editorial estimate |
What you need to start
- A mixer, a coil press or die machine, a drying room or dryer, packing equipment and scales. No documented machine prices were found, so the capital figure is an estimate.Equipment
- Sawdust, coir powder, binder and approved insecticide, plus wrapping paper and cartons. No source gives the raw material prices.Starting stock
- Location clearance and environmental clearance from the Department of Environment under the Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act 1995. A coil plant cannot be set up in a residential area; residents' complaints trigger re-inspection and the clearance can be cancelled. An appeal lies to the ministry's appeal board.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, in 3-5 working days, plus TIN and VAT from NBR and a fire licence from Fire Service and Civil Defence.Licence
- BSTI certification mark from the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution. Mosquito coil is item 39 on the mandatory certification list under BDS 1089:2018, third revision, and manufacture or sale without it is prohibited. The fee and validity could not be verified.Licence
- Holding the mix ratio and keeping the insecticide dose within the standard. Burn time, smoke and whether the coil snaps all follow from that ratio.Skill
- A site in an industrial area away from housing, a roomy drying shed and proper ventilation. Getting the site wrong is the most expensive mistake in this business.Workspace
How the work is done
- 1Choosing the site is the first and most important decision. The Department of Environment will not give location clearance in a residential area, so settle that before buying any land.
- 2Apply to the Department of Environment for location clearance. A neighbour's objection brings a fresh inspection, and if the area is found residential the clearance is cancelled.
- 3Apply for BSTI certification. Mosquito coil is item 39 on the mandatory list under BDS 1089:2018, third revision, and nothing can go to market without it.
- 4Take the trade licence from the city corporation or municipality, TIN and VAT registration from NBR, and a fire licence from Fire Service and Civil Defence.
- 5Install the plant: a mixer, a coil press or die machine, a drying room or dryer, and packing equipment.
- 6Fix suppliers for sawdust, coir powder, binder and approved insecticide. The insecticide dose has to match the standard: too much is a health hazard and too little does not work.
- 7Make samples and test them: how long they burn, how much smoke, whether they snap. Those three make or break the name in the retail market.
- 8Print the BSTI certification details, ingredients, expiry and factory address clearly on the pack. That is the first thing checked in an anti-counterfeit raid.
- 9Build a dealer network. The margin on a single coil is a few paisa, so survival depends on keeping transport and distribution cheap.
- 10Stock up before the dengue season. Most of the year's sales happen in the monsoon and the months after, and raw material gets tight at the same time.
Seasons
- JanNormal
- FebNormal
- MarNormal
- AprHigh
- MayHigh
- JunHigh
- JulHigh
- AugHigh
- SepHigh
- OctHigh
- NovNormal
- DecNormal
Where it works well
- Strong fitBogura · The northern industrial and trading centre with a BSCIC estate and easy distribution across the northern districts.
- Strong fitGazipur · Roomy industrial zones, sites available away from housing, and the Dhaka market close by.
- PossibleChattogram · The port makes importing raw material easy and the city gives strong demand.
- PossibleCumilla · Industrial areas along the highway, with distribution possible towards both Dhaka and Chattogram.
- PossibleDhaka · The biggest market and dealer network, but getting clearance for a plant inside the city is effectively impossible.
- PossibleKhulna · The distribution centre for the south, with demand high because mosquitoes are a constant problem.
- PossibleKishoreganj · Coil factories already exist around Bhairab, so skilled hands and a supply chain are in place.
- PossibleNarayanganj · Industrial areas and wholesale markets are close, but dense settlement makes environmental clearance contentious, as the Sonargaon case shows.
- PossibleRangpur · A market for the northern districts with relatively less competition.
- PossibleSylhet · Mosquitoes are worse in the haor areas and purchasing power is reasonable.
Risks and cautions
- HighCompliance: Failing to get site clearance is the biggest risk here. After residents objected to a proposed coil plant at Nayapur in Sonargaon, Narayanganj, the Department of Environment investigated more than once; every inspection found the area residential and held that the law barred a plant there. The Department cancelled the location clearance, an appeal restored it once, and the next inspection cancelled it again. If this happens after the land is bought and the machines brought in, the whole investment is stuck.
- HighCompliance: No coil may be made or sold without BSTI's mandatory certificate, mosquito coil being item 39 under BDS 1089:2018. Without it, or if the product fails the standard, a mobile court raid means seizure, destruction and a fine. Raids against counterfeit branded coils are also routine, so a small plant has to keep its papers to hand at all times.
- MediumDemand: Sales run on the season. Demand multiplies through the monsoon and the dengue months and falls away in winter. Stock has to be built before the season and that money sits idle for months. A weak season leaves the stock unsold, and the insecticide loses potency over time.
- MediumDependency: The margin on a coil is tiny: retail is only Tk 5-8 and the shop and the dealer take their share of that. Survival means large volumes and dependence on dealers. A small plant loses the fight for shelf space against the big brands easily, and if a dealer walks, a whole region's market goes with him.
- MediumOther: Working with insecticide means both a health and a fire risk. Sawdust and chemicals sit together in the plant and dust builds up in the drying room, so the fire risk is real and both a licence and proper arrangements are needed. Without masks and gloves, workers develop long-term breathing and skin problems.
Sources
- Collected: 16 Sept 2026
Supports: Starting capital · বাংলাদেশ
সিটি কর্পোরেশন থেকে ট্রেড লাইসেন্স প্রাপ্তির ধাপ সমূহ
Collected: 16 Sept 2026Supports: Starting capital · বাংলাদেশ
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