Guacamole Filling Machine
The SDH-R automatic guacamole filling machine fills, nitrogen-flushes, seals and caps chunky or smooth avocado dip at up to 30 cups per minute with ±0.5% fill accuracy.
The SDH-R is a fully automatic guacamole filling machine engineered around the one variable that decides shelf appeal: oxygen. Every second an open cup of avocado dip spends in air feeds enzymatic browning, so the SDH-R doses with a gentle servo piston that will not whip air into the mash, applies an optional MAP nitrogen flush, then heat-seals a tamper-evident membrane in the same rotary pass. Built in Calgary, Alberta by Alter Pack. See the SDH-R specification, our guacamole filling application notes, or request a quote.
Why the SDH-R Excels at Guacamole
MAP Nitrogen Flush Holds the Colour
Headspace oxygen is displaced immediately before sealing, so the membrane closes over nitrogen instead of air. On refrigerated guacamole that commonly moves shelf life from roughly seven to ten days out to 30 to 45 days or more.
Gentle Piston Fill, No Whipped-In Air
A servo-driven volumetric piston transfers guacamole in one smooth stroke rather than beating it through a pump. Less entrained air means less browning under the seal and a cleaner surface when the consumer peels it.
Chunky or Smooth Avocado Dip
Large-bore valving passes avocado chunks, diced onion and tomato without shearing them to paste, while the same servo piston holds ±0.5% fill accuracy on a dense, fully smooth, lime-acidified restaurant-style guacamole.
304 Stainless, CE, FDA and UL Certified
Lime-acidified guacamole contacts food-grade 304 stainless steel only, with CIP clean-in-place and tool-free strip-down between runs. Designed and built in Calgary, Alberta by Alter Pack and backed by a 12-month warranty.
Why a Guacamole Filling Machine Is Really an Oxygen Control Problem
Every other packaging question in guacamole is secondary to enzymatic browning. Polyphenol oxidase in avocado flesh reacts with oxygen, and the grey-brown surface that follows is the most common reason a retail guacamole cup is rejected on shelf or returned by a distributor. Acidification with lime slows the reaction. Cold chain slows it. Neither removes the oxygen already sitting in the cup at the moment you seal it, which is why the packaging machine, not the recipe, usually sets the ceiling on colour hold.
MAP Nitrogen Flush Immediately Before the Seal
The SDH-R offers an optional modified atmosphere nitrogen flush at the station directly ahead of sealing, displacing headspace air so the membrane closes over nitrogen. On refrigerated avocado dip that typically moves shelf life from roughly seven to ten days to 30 to 45 days or more, depending on recipe, pH, film and cold chain. For a guacamole brand it is the difference between direct-store delivery inside one city and a distributed retail listing.
Fill Gently: Do Not Whip Air Into the Mash
Oxygen also gets into guacamole during filling. Pumps and aggressively agitated hoppers fold air into the product, and that entrained air stays in the cup, browns from the inside and shows up as pale foam under the lid. The SDH-R uses a servo-driven volumetric piston that draws and deposits in a controlled stroke, so guacamole is transferred rather than beaten.
- Low-shear transfer: short product path, large-bore valving, no high-speed impeller.
- Repeatable headspace: ±0.5% fill accuracy keeps the gas volume above the product consistent, so the flush performs identically cup to cup.
- Immediate closure: fill, flush and seal all happen within one rotary index.
Configuration detail sits on the SDH-R product page, with line examples in our guacamole filling application notes.
Automatic Guacamole Filling Machine: Chunky and Smooth Dosing
Guacamole is not one product. A chunky, hand-mashed style carries avocado pieces, diced onion, tomato and cilantro that have to survive the trip from hopper to cup; a smooth restaurant-style dip is a dense, sticky paste that resists flowing into a narrow valve. The SDH-R handles both with the same servo-driven volumetric piston and large-bore valving, dosing 50g to 500g per deposit at ±0.5% fill-weight accuracy. Both styles need the same two things from a filler: enough valve area to move solids, and enough control to stop at exactly the right weight.
Accuracy Is a Margin Question
Avocado is expensive, so overfill is the quietest cost on a guacamole line. Hand-filling and scale-topping drift, and the compensation is always the same: overfill every cup so that no cup runs light. A piston that meters by displacement removes that habit. Set 227g and the machine deposits 227g, run after run, whether the hopper is full or nearly empty. Across a shift, that difference is measured in cases of saleable product rather than in grams.
Three Filler Stations in One Pass
Premium avocado SKUs increasingly need more than a single deposit. The SDH-R supports up to three filler stations on one turret, so a cup can receive a base guacamole, a drizzle of crema or salsa and a garnish of pico de gallo or cotija in a single rotary pass, with no second handling and no second exposure to air.
Acidification and Material Compatibility
Lime-acidified guacamole is aggressive on the wrong metals. The SDH-R runs food-grade 304 stainless steel through the entire product path, which is also why the same base machine appears across our range of dip filling and sealing machines for other acidic and high-fat products. CIP clean-in-place and tool-free strip-down matter just as much here, because a high-fat dip will otherwise leave residue in threads and dead legs between runs.
Guacamole Cup Filling Machine: Cups, Seals, Lids and Changeover
The SDH-R is a rotary guacamole cup filling machine: a pneumatic cup denester drops cups onto the turret, and each one indexes through filling, optional nitrogen flush, heat sealing and lidding before discharge. The complete machine occupies a 44 x 52 in footprint, so it fits a commissary or a small co-packing bay rather than demanding a new room. Cups are held square and stationary at every station, which matters when the seal has to trap a flushed atmosphere and not merely cover the product.
Cup Formats It Runs
- Standard sizes: 4oz, 8oz, 10oz and 16oz.
- Custom sizes: 2oz to 32oz on request.
- Shapes: round, square and rectangular.
- Fill weights: 50g to 500g, covering single-serve snack cups through food-service tubs.
Sealing and Lid Options
Standard sealing is a roll-film membrane heat seal with independently controlled temperature, pressure and dwell, producing a tamper-evident closure that also holds the flushed atmosphere in place. Pre-cut lids are available where print registration matters, and a snap-on lid can be applied over the membrane for reclosable multi-serve guacamole. Because the seal is what protects the nitrogen headspace, rim cleanliness matters: the piston deposits centre-cup and to a set volume, so product does not climb into the sealing flange.
Recipes and Sub-15-Minute Changeover
A PLC and HMI store one recipe per SKU covering fill volume, seal temperature, dwell and index speed, so switching from an 8oz chunky guacamole to a 2oz snack cup is a menu selection plus a tooling change, completed in under 15 minutes. Because one frame performs five jobs, there is no line of separate conveyors and sealers to re-time whenever the format changes. Producers running spreads alongside dips often specify the same frame as our hummus filling machine.
Guacamole Packaging Machine Price, Certification and Lead Time
The SDH-R guacamole packaging machine starts at $45,000 USD, with typical delivery in 8 to 12 weeks. What moves the number is configuration, so it pays to scope the machine against the SKUs and shelf life you are actually selling into. Most avocado processors are comparing it against hand-filling plus a bench sealer, where the real costs are overfilled cups, slow output and product that browns before it reaches shelf.
What Drives the Quote
- MAP nitrogen flush: for refrigerated guacamole this is rarely optional in practice, because colour hold is the product claim.
- Filler stations: one, two or three deposits per cup in a single pass.
- Lidding: membrane only, pre-cut lid, or snap-on lid over the seal.
- Cup tooling: one format included, further shapes and diameters quoted as change parts.
Certification, Build and Sanitation
The SDH-R is designed and built in Calgary, Alberta by Alter Pack, and is CE, FDA and UL certified. The product path is food-grade 304 stainless steel with CIP clean-in-place and tool-free strip-down, which is what makes a same-day sanitation cycle realistic on a high-fat product that a retail or third-party audit will scrutinise. Those certifications also shorten the conversation when a national grocery buyer asks how your guacamole is packed.
Warranty, Service and Commissioning
Machines carry a 12-month warranty with service centres in Alberta, New Jersey and California, so parts and technicians are on the same continent as your production. Commissioning is run on your own guacamole recipe rather than a water test, so fill weights, flush settings and seal parameters are dialled in and saved before the line goes live. Change parts for additional cup formats can be ordered later as the range grows. Send your cup size, target fill weight and required shelf life and speak with an application engineer.
Certified, Food-Grade Engineering Behind Every Guacamole Filling Machine
CE, FDA & UL Certified
Every SDH-R ships with CE (European conformity), FDA (US food-contact) and UL (electrical safety) documentation - the paperwork your auditor, insurer and electrical authority ask to see.
Food-Grade 304 Stainless Steel
All product-contact surfaces are food-grade 304 stainless with CIP clean-in-place and tool-free strip-down, built for HACCP and BRCGS-audited facilities.
Servo-Driven Precision
A closed-loop servo volumetric piston holds +/-0.5% fill-weight accuracy across the full 50-500 g range, protecting net-content compliance and cutting product give-away.
Made in Calgary by Alter Pack
Designed and built in Calgary, Alberta, Canada by Alter Pack, with a 12-month warranty and North American service centres in Alberta, New Jersey and California.
SDH-R Guacamole Filling Machine - Full Specifications
Complete specification for the SDH-R automatic rotary cup filling, sealing and cupping machine.
| Specification | SDH-R |
|---|---|
| Throughput | Up to 30 cups per minute (dry cycle) |
| Real-world output | 18-25 cups/min depending on product, cup size & options |
| Fill range | 50 g - 500 g (2 oz - 17 oz) |
| Fill-weight accuracy | +/-0.5% (servo-driven volumetric piston) |
| Standard cup sizes | 4 oz, 8 oz, 10 oz, 16 oz |
| Custom cup sizes | 2 oz - 32 oz with matching tooling |
| Cup shapes | Round, square, rectangular |
| Sealing | Roll-film membrane heat seal (tamper-evident) |
| Lidding options | Pre-cut lid | snap-on lid (pick-and-place) |
| Shelf-life option | MAP nitrogen flush - 7-10 days to 30-45+ days refrigerated |
| Filler stations | Up to 3 (base + drizzle + garnish in one pass) |
| Construction | Food-grade 304 stainless steel |
| Cleaning | CIP clean-in-place + tool-free strip-down |
| Controls | PLC + HMI with recipe storage & diagnostics |
| Changeover | Under ~15 minutes between SKUs |
| Certifications | CE, FDA, UL |
| Footprint | 44 x 52 in (1,100.5 x 1,315.5 mm) |
| Height | 65.6 in |
| Origin | Made in Calgary, Alberta, Canada by Alter Pack |
| Warranty | 12 months |
| Delivery | 8-12 weeks from order confirmation |
| Starting price | From $45,000 USD |
The SDH-R Guacamole Filling Machine
Products It Fills
Available In These Markets
How the SDH-R Fills & Seals Guacamole
Fully automatic from empty cup to sealed, retail-ready product - no manual labour
Cup Denesting
Empty cups are automatically separated from a nested stack and placed into the rotary table carriers. The pneumatic denester handles round, square, and rectangular cups from 2oz to 32oz.
Servo-Driven Filling
The volumetric piston filler draws a precise dose and dispenses it into the cup. Servo control adjusts stroke length and speed per recipe, maintaining plus/minus 0.5% fill-weight accuracy. The PLC stores recipes for quick changeovers.
Membrane Heat Sealing
Roll-stock film is drawn across the filled cup and heat-sealed to create a tamper-evident, airtight membrane. Sealing temperature, pressure, and dwell time are individually controlled to match your film and cup materials.
Snap-On Lid (Optional)
A pick-and-place mechanism applies a consumer-friendly snap-on lid over the membrane seal - a two-barrier system providing tamper evidence and reclosability for grocery retail and foodservice.
MAP Nitrogen Flush (Optional)
Modified Atmosphere Packaging replaces headspace oxygen with food-grade nitrogen immediately before sealing, typically extending refrigerated shelf life from 7-10 days to 30-45+ days.
Guacamole Filling Machine - Frequently Asked Questions
The SDH-R starts at $45,000 USD. Final pricing depends on configuration: MAP nitrogen flush, the number of filler stations, lidding method and how many cup formats you tool for. Typical delivery is 8 to 12 weeks. Every machine ships CE, FDA and UL certified with a 12-month warranty and North American service coverage.
It removes the main driver. Flushing displaces headspace oxygen immediately before the seal, so the avocado surface is not sitting against air. Combined with lime acidification and cold chain, refrigerated guacamole commonly moves from roughly seven to ten days to 30 to 45 days or more, depending on recipe, pH, film and storage temperature.
Up to 30 cups per minute on a dry cycle. Plan production around 18 to 25 cups per minute, since dense guacamole fills more slowly than a thin sauce and larger cups take longer to dose. Fill weight, cup size and product texture set the real rate, not the servo drive.
Yes. Large-bore valving passes avocado chunks, diced onion and tomato without shearing them, and the servo piston meters dense smooth dip just as accurately, holding ±0.5% fill-weight accuracy from 50g to 500g. Switching between the two recipes is a stored HMI recipe recall rather than a mechanical rebuild.
The product path is food-grade 304 stainless steel with CIP clean-in-place and tool-free strip-down, so hopper, piston and valve open for inspection without hand tools. That matters with a high-fat, oxidation-prone product where residue is not acceptable. Wash-down and a full size changeover fit within the same 15-minute window.
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