Dessert Cup Filling Machine for Mousse, Cheesecake and Layered Desserts
Fill, layer, seal and lid mousse, cheesecake, tiramisu and panna cotta cups in one rotary pass. The SDH-R runs up to three filling stations at ±0.5% fill accuracy and up to 30 cups per minute, built in Calgary.
A dessert cup filling machine deposits chilled dessert components into pre-formed cups, then seals and lids them. The Hummus Pack SDH-R is a rotary dessert cup filling machine with up to three filling stations, so a mousse, cheesecake or tiramisu cup can receive a base, sauce and crumb or cocoa topping in one pass. It fills 50–500 g at ±0.5% accuracy, heat-seals film and runs up to 30 cups per minute (18–25 real-world).
- Machine
- SDH-R automatic rotary cup filling, sealing and lidding machine
- Output
- Up to 30 cups/min (18–25 real-world)
- Fill range
- 50 g – 500 g (approx. 2 oz – 17 oz) at ±0.5% accuracy
- Filling stations
- Up to 3: piston, garnish, vibration or peristaltic fillers
- Cup sizes
- 4, 8, 10, 16 oz standard; custom 2–32 oz; round, square, rectangular
- Closing
- Roll-film heat seal, pre-die-cut lids, plastic lid pick-and-place / snap-on
- Price & lead time
- From $45,000 USD; 8–12 weeks; 12-month warranty
What a Dessert Cup Filling Machine Does on a Chilled Line
A dessert cup filling machine takes empty pre-formed cups, deposits one or more dessert components at a controlled weight, and closes each cup with sealed film and, where needed, a plastic lid. For mousse, cheesecake cups, tiramisu, panna cotta, rice pudding and trifle, the hard part is not raw speed. It is keeping each layer intact, each flange clean and each portion on weight. Our SDH-R automatic cup filling and sealing machine does this on one indexing turret, designed and built in Calgary, Alberta.
Because the SDH-R is a rotary cup filling machine, each cup sits in its own pocket and is held still while every component is deposited, which gives cleaner layers than a cup moving under a nozzle. One pass runs in this order:
- Cup loading: a pneumatic denester places a pre-formed cup in the turret pocket.
- Base filling: a servo-driven volumetric piston deposits mousse, cheesecake cream, mascarpone cream or a pudding base.
- Secondary and third filling (optional): a garnish, vibration or peristaltic filler adds crumb, cocoa, nuts or sauce.
- Membrane sealing: film cut from a roll is heat-sealed to the flange for a tamper-evident closure.
- Nitrogen MAP flushing (optional): residual oxygen in the pack is reduced to 0.3–0.4%.
- Lidding (optional): a plastic lid is placed and snapped on, then the cup discharges to a conveyor.
Which Desserts This Dessert Cup Packaging Machine Handles
The SDH-R targets fresh, refrigerated dessert cups filled at a pumpable temperature, including:
- Mousse: chocolate, fruit and plant-based mousse whose aeration must survive the fill.
- Cheesecake cups: cream cheese or mascarpone filling with a biscuit or graham-crumb layer.
- Tiramisu cups: mascarpone cream, sponge or biscuit pieces and a cocoa finish.
- Panna cotta and set creams: filled as a liquid, set in the chiller after sealing.
- Rice pudding: a creamy base carrying whole cooked grains.
- Trifle and layered desserts: cream, fruit sauce and sponge or crumb stacked in a clear cup.
Three dessert families have dedicated pages because their problems are specific: chocolate, vanilla and plant-based cups on our pudding cup filling machine page, custard pots and caramel-layer flan on the custard filling machine page, and yogurt, compote and granola on the parfait cup filling machine page. This page covers the aerated, layered and liquid-then-set desserts in between.
Mousse Cup Filling Machine Setup: Keeping the Air In
Mousse texture and declared weight both depend on air whipped in upstream. Every time mousse is pumped, forced through a narrow valve or sheared, some air is lost and the product densifies, so cups look under-filled at the right weight or run over-weight at the right level. A mousse cup filling machine has to move the product as few times, and as gently, as possible.
On the SDH-R the base filler is a servo-driven volumetric piston that draws a set volume and deposits it in a single controlled stroke, rather than recirculating product through a pump loop. Because the drive is servo-controlled, stroke speed can be tuned and stored per recipe, so a delicate mousse can be deposited more gently than a dense cheesecake cream on the same machine. Our servo cup filler page explains the principle.
Volume versus weight in aerated desserts
A volumetric filler holds volume, not weight. If overrun drifts upstream, from a warmer batch or a longer hold, the same volume weighs more or less. For aerated desserts we recommend the optional weight checker with feedback loop, which corrects fill volume against target weight instead of overfilling every cup to stay safe.
- Keep the hold time between aeration and filling short and consistent.
- Use a cut-off nozzle for a clean foam break, so tails do not drag across the flange.
- Leave headspace under the film; mousse that touches the film smears onto the flange.
Layered Dessert Cup Filler for Cheesecake and Tiramisu Cups
The SDH-R carries up to three fillers on one turret, so a layered dessert can be built in a single pass instead of moving between machines or being finished by hand. Each station is chosen for its component:
- Volumetric piston filler (standard): creams, mousse, pudding and other pastes and liquids.
- Garnish filler (optional): biscuit crumb, crumble, chopped nuts, chocolate pieces, diced sponge.
- Vibration filler (optional): cocoa powder and other dry dustings.
- Peristaltic pump (optional): thin sauces such as fruit coulis or coffee syrup.
Cheesecake cup filling machine build order
A cheesecake cup is built either with a crumb base under the filling or with crumble on top. For a crumb base, a garnish filler deposits the biscuit layer and the piston fills cheesecake cream over it; for a topping, the order reverses. Station sequence is fixed at configuration, so tell us your build order when you request a quote. A loose crumb layer moves when cream lands on it, and a gentler piston stroke keeps the layer line crisp in a clear cup.
Tiramisu cup filling machine considerations
Whole soaked ladyfingers cannot be deposited automatically, so tiramisu cups are usually built from pumpable mascarpone cream, sponge or biscuit pieces from a garnish filler, and cocoa from a vibration filler. Soaked pieces are trialed first, because wet pieces can bridge in a hopper, and cocoa that drifts onto the flange weakens the seal. Read more in our article on multi-component filling for layered cups and on the multi-head cup filling machine page.
Get a configured SDH-R quote for your productSend your product, cup size and target cups per minute — we reply within 24 hours.
Request a quotePanna Cotta and Liquid-Then-Set Desserts
Panna cotta and gelatin-set creams are filled as liquids and become dessert later, in the chiller. The SDH-R fills them with the volumetric piston and a suck-back nozzle, which pulls back the last drop so nothing drips between cups. The cup is sealed while still liquid and sets in your downstream chilling.
- Fill temperature: the SDH-R targets refrigerated products filled at a pumpable temperature, and hot-fill is not claimed. If your panna cotta must be deposited warm, confirm the temperature with our engineering team before quoting.
- Slosh: thin liquid on an indexing turret can wave toward the flange, so fill level, cup shape and headspace are set together.
- Set-on-set layers: a fruit layer on a set panna cotta needs the base to set first, which cannot happen in one pass.
- Condensation: sealing warm product and then chilling it can fog a clear cup.
Rice Pudding and Trifle: Particulates in Dessert Cups
Rice pudding carries whole grains and trifle carries fruit or sponge pieces. Two things go wrong: pieces are crushed in the valve, and the particulate-to-sauce ratio drifts between cups.
The SDH-R's piston filler can be specified with large-bore valving that passes particulates without forcing them through a narrow gap. Ratio drift is usually upstream, because rice settles out of a thin sauce when product sits still, so we review viscosity, particle size and hold time during the application review.
Dessert Cup Filling Machine Approach by Dessert Type
Here is how we configure the SDH-R for each dessert's main filling challenge, always confirmed against your actual product.
Dessert type vs filling challenge vs SDH-R approach
| Dessert type | Main filling challenge | SDH-R approach |
|---|---|---|
| Mousse | Aeration loss and density drift | Single-stroke servo piston, cut-off nozzle, weight checker with feedback loop |
| Cheesecake cup | Crumb layer and a clean layer line | Garnish filler for crumb plus piston for cream; build order set at configuration |
| Tiramisu cup | Cocoa on the flange; wet sponge pieces | Vibration filler for cocoa, garnish filler for pieces after a trial |
| Panna cotta | Thin liquid, drips and slosh | Piston with suck-back nozzle; fill level and headspace set for indexing |
| Rice pudding | Grain damage and ratio drift | Large-bore valving; viscosity and hold time reviewed |
| Trifle and layered cups | Several components, visible layers | Up to 3 fillers in one pass; garnish station for sponge or fruit |
Clear Premium Cups, Clean Flanges and Reliable Seals
Premium dessert cups are often clear because the layers sell the product, and a clear cup shows every wall smear and bled layer. Presentation comes down to the same details as seal quality: a controlled deposit, a clean nozzle break and nothing on the flange.
The SDH-R handles round, square and rectangular pre-formed cups in standard 4, 8, 10 and 16 oz sizes, with custom 2 to 32 oz sizes on matching change parts. Closures include roll-film membrane sealing, pre-die-cut lids, and plastic lid pick-and-place with a snapping device for over-top lids. A heat seal depends on temperature, pressure and dwell on a clean flange; cream, cocoa or crumb in the seal path creates leak channels. See our automatic cup sealing machine page for more.
- Specify cup material and lidding film as a matched pair.
- Run peel and leak checks at each shift start and after every changeover.
Cold Chain, MAP and Allergen Control for Dessert Cups
Modified atmosphere for chilled desserts
The optional nitrogen flush reduces residual oxygen to 0.3–0.4%, which slows fat oxidation and aerobic spoilage in dairy and egg desserts. Our MAP system typically extends refrigerated shelf life from roughly 7–10 days to 30–45 days or more, but results are product-dependent, so validate desserts with shelf-life trials. A strong gas flush can disturb a cocoa dusting, and MAP never replaces the cold chain. See the MAP cup filling machine page for configuration.
Allergens: milk, egg, wheat and nuts
Dessert lines carry dense allergen profiles: milk in almost every SKU, egg in mousse bases, wheat in biscuit and sponge, tree nuts in praline toppings, soy in chocolate. In the US, FALCPA and the FASTER Act define nine major allergens, with sesame added on January 1, 2023; in Canada, gluten sources are priority allergens and SFCR-licensed plants must maintain preventive controls. Allergen changeovers belong in your FDA FSMA (21 CFR Part 117) allergen preventive controls and your HACCP, BRCGS or SQF program.
The SDH-R is designed to support those programs with food-grade 304 stainless steel, tool-free strip-down and an optional CIP system. A SKU changeover between two milk-based mousses can take under about 15 minutes; moving from a nut-topped dessert to a nut-free SKU needs a full validated clean, so many plants sequence runs from fewest allergens to most.
When the SDH-R Is Not the Right Dessert Cup Machine
The SDH-R suits chilled dessert cups at small to mid volumes with frequent SKU changes. It is the wrong choice for:
- Single-SKU volume above 30 cups per minute: a dedicated inline line fits better; our inline cup filling machine page explains the trade-offs.
- Frozen desserts such as ice cream cups: we do not claim frozen-product filling.
- Shelf-stable dessert cups: the SDH-R is not aseptic and not a retort system.
- Form-fill-seal from film: it fills pre-formed cups and does not thermoform them.
- Dessert shots under 50 g: below the standard fill range; 2 oz cups are at the low end.
Dessert Cup Filling Machine Price, Lead Time and Quote
The SDH-R starts from $45,000 USD for the single-filler configuration. Price scales with additional fillers, MAP, labeling and custom tooling. The machine runs up to 30 cups per minute dry; with real desserts, extra fillers and lidding, plan on 18–25. Lead time is 8–12 weeks from order confirmation with a 12-month warranty, supported from our service centers in Alberta, New Jersey and California. Our guide to cup filling and sealing machine cost breaks down the drivers.
To quote a dessert cup filling machine accurately, we need:
- Your products: dessert types, viscosity, aeration, particulates and powders.
- Cup and closure: size, shape, material, and film seal or plastic lid.
- Target cups per minute per SKU and changeover frequency.
- Options: MAP, weight checker, labeling, coding, CIP.
Send those through our quote request form and we reply within about 24 hours. We may ask about fill temperature, aeration and layer order first, because each changes the configuration.
Dessert Cup Filling Machine — Frequently Asked Questions
The Hummus Pack SDH-R dessert cup filling machine starts from $45,000 USD for a single-filler configuration. Layered desserts often need extra stations, such as a garnish filler for crumb or a vibration filler for cocoa, and price rises with fillers, MAP, labeling and custom tooling. Send your products, cup size and target output through our contact page for a quote within about 24 hours.
The SDH-R runs up to 30 cups per minute on a dry cycle. In real dessert production, expect about 18–25 cups per minute depending on product, cup size, fill weight and options such as extra filling stations, MAP and lidding. For single-SKU volumes above 30 cups per minute, an inline line is the better fit.
Yes, if mousse is moved gently and as few times as possible. The SDH-R deposits mousse with a servo-driven volumetric piston in a single controlled stroke rather than recirculating it through a pump, with stroke speed tuned per recipe. Because volumetric filling holds volume rather than weight, the optional weight checker with feedback loop corrects for overrun drift.
Yes. The SDH-R carries up to three filling stations on one rotary turret, so a dessert cup can receive a cream base, a sauce and a crumb, nut or cocoa topping in a single pass. A piston fills creams, a garnish filler adds crumb and pieces, and a vibration filler adds cocoa. Station order, such as crumb base first, is set at configuration.
The SDH-R's standard cup sizes are 4, 8, 10 and 16 oz, with custom sizes from 2 to 32 oz on matching change parts, in round, square or rectangular pre-formed cups, including clear cups. The standard fill range is 50–500 g (about 2–17 oz) at ±0.5% accuracy. Dessert shots below 50 g are outside the standard range.
Yes. The SDH-R fills panna cotta and set creams as liquids using its volumetric piston with a suck-back nozzle to prevent drips; cups are sealed and then set in downstream chilling. The machine targets refrigerated products filled at a pumpable temperature and hot-fill is not claimed, so confirm any warm fill temperature with our engineering team before quoting.
It can. The SDH-R's optional nitrogen flush reduces residual oxygen to 0.3–0.4%, slowing oxidation and aerobic spoilage. Our MAP system typically extends refrigerated shelf life from roughly 7–10 days to 30–45 days or more, but dessert results depend on formulation, hygiene and cold chain, so validate with shelf-life trials. MAP never replaces refrigeration.
The SDH-R uses food-grade 304 stainless steel, tool-free strip-down and an optional CIP system so product-contact parts clean thoroughly. A routine SKU changeover takes under about 15 minutes, but moving from a milk, egg, wheat or nut recipe to one without that allergen needs a full validated clean under your HACCP and FSMA preventive controls plan.
The Hummus Pack SDH-R is built in Calgary, Alberta, with a lead time of 8–12 weeks from order confirmation and a 12-month warranty. It is supported from our service centers in Alberta, New Jersey and California, serving food producers in the USA, Canada, the UK, the EU, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand.
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