To provide a reduced pellet having the strength suitable to the treatment.

Residual carbon in the reduced pellet 40 is regulated to ≤1%. In a production of the residual pellet 40, firstly, green pellet 30, in which metallic oxide and reducing agent are mixed and granulated, is heated to high temp. in a heating zone 22 of a rotary hearth furnace 10. The metallic oxide in this heated green pellet 30 is reduced and metallized by allowing the atmospheric gas to contact with a carbon base reducing agent in this pellet 30 in a reducing zone 24. In this way, the reduced pellet 40 having ≤1% residual carbon, is obtd. The crushing strength of the reduced pellet 40 having ≤1% residual carbon secures ≥50 kgf/cm2 collapsing strength suitable to the treatment of the pellet 40.