Automatic Yogurt Filling Machine: Fill, Seal and Lid Cups in One Pass
A servo-driven rotary yogurt cup filler and sealer built in Calgary. Fills 50 g to 500 g at ±0.5%, runs up to 30 cups per minute, and handles Greek, stirred, set and fruit-on-bottom yogurt.
A yogurt filling machine portions yogurt into pre-formed cups and seals them in one automated pass. The Hummus Pack SDH-R is a rotary yogurt cup filling machine that fills 50 g to 500 g (about 2 to 17 oz) at ±0.5% accuracy with a servo-driven piston, runs up to 30 cups per minute (18 to 25 real-world), and seals with roll film or lids. Pricing starts at $45,000 USD.
- Output
- Up to 30 cups/min (18-25 real-world)
- Fill range
- 50 g - 500 g (approx. 2 oz - 17 oz)
- Fill accuracy
- ±0.5% (servo-driven volumetric piston)
- Cup sizes
- 4, 8, 10, 16 oz standard; custom 2 oz - 32 oz with tooling
- Closing
- Roll-film heat seal, pre-cut lids, snap-on lids
- Changeover
- Under ~15 minutes between SKUs
- Price
- From $45,000 USD (single-filler configuration)
What Is a Yogurt Filling Machine?
A yogurt filling machine is a packaging machine that deposits a measured weight of yogurt into pre-formed cups and, in a fill-and-seal design, closes each cup before it leaves the line. The Hummus Pack SDH-R is a fully automatic rotary yogurt filling machine: cups index around a turret and pass through every station in a single pass. It is designed and built in Calgary, Alberta, for food producers across the USA and Canada.
The SDH-R packages yogurt; it does not make it. Culturing, incubation, straining and cooling happen upstream in your plant. A rotary cup filling machine suits small and mid-size yogurt producers because one compact turret handles denesting, filling, sealing and lidding together.
- Cup loading and denesting with a pneumatic denester.
- Base component filling with the servo-driven volumetric piston.
- Optional second and third filling (fruit prep, honey, granola, nuts, seeds).
- Roll-film membrane sealing.
- Optional nitrogen MAP flushing.
- Optional plastic lid pick-and-place or snap-on lid, then discharge to your conveyor.
For a deeper look at how the filler behaves with different textures, read our yogurt filling technical guide. This page covers which machine to buy, what it costs and how it is configured.
Yogurt Filling Machine Specifications and Price
These are the standard SDH-R figures. Plan around 18 to 25 cups per minute real-world; 30 is the dry-cycle ceiling.
SDH-R specifications for yogurt cup filling
| Specification | SDH-R value |
|---|---|
| Output | Up to 30 CPM dry cycle; 18-25 CPM real-world |
| Fill range | 50 g - 500 g (approx. 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 (pre-formed cups and tubs) |
| Filling stations | Up to 3 fillers in one pass |
| Controls | PLC, HMI with recipe storage and diagnostic alerts |
| Construction | Food-grade 304 stainless steel; CIP and tool-free strip-down |
| Regulatory | CE, FDA-compliant food-contact materials, UL listed |
| Footprint | 44 x 52 in (1,100.5 x 1,315.5 mm); height 65.6 in (1,666 mm) |
Pricing starts from $45,000 USD for the single-filler configuration. A fruit filler, nitrogen MAP, labeling, a weight checker, CIP and custom tooling each add to that figure. Our cup filling and sealing machine cost guide explains what drives it, and the SDH-R product page lists every option.
Which Yogurt Styles Can a Yogurt Cup Filling Machine Handle?
A yogurt cup filling machine has to match the texture, not just the product name. Set, stirred, Greek and skyr behave very differently at the nozzle.
Yogurt style versus SDH-R setup
| Yogurt style | How it behaves at the filler | SDH-R setup | Fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Set (cultured in the cup) | Inoculated milk base is thin, fills like a liquid, and gels later during incubation | Servo piston, suck-back nozzle, film seal; incubation happens downstream in the cup | Yes; confirm fill temperature first |
| Stirred (Swiss-style) | Gel structure is broken and pumped; shear-sensitive, can thin or weep | Slow stroke profile, wide-bore valve, suck-back nozzle | Good fit |
| Greek / strained | Thick, high-protein, holds its shape and traps air | Positive-displacement piston, controlled feed to the filler, wide-bore valve | Good fit |
| Skyr | Thicker still, close to paste | Same as Greek; feed design reviewed against viscosity | Good fit after review |
| Fruit-on-bottom | Fruit prep with pieces plus a white mass | Two fillers: fruit prep first, yogurt second | Good fit |
| Yogurt with toppings | Dry or crunchy garnish on top | Third station: garnish filler for granola, nuts or seeds | Good fit |
| Drinkable yogurt | Pourable liquid, normally sold in bottles | Not a bottle filler; cups only | Cups only |
On drinkable yogurt, we are candid: the SDH-R fills pre-formed cups and does not fill bottles. If your drinkable product ships in a sealed cup, our engineering team will confirm the fit. If it ships in a bottle, you need a different machine.
Viscosity, Shear Sensitivity and Live Cultures
Shear is the main thing that goes wrong when a yogurt filling machine is matched to the wrong texture. Stirred yogurt is thixotropic: its viscosity drops under shear and only partly recovers. Pump it too hard through a narrow orifice and you get a thinner body and visible whey separation in the cup.
The SDH-R uses a servo-driven volumetric piston, so the stroke speed can be slowed for delicate products rather than forced through a rotary pump. Wide-bore valving and the choice between a cut-off nozzle and a suck-back nozzle limit how hard the product is worked. The suck-back option also gives a drip-free finish, which keeps the cup flange clean for sealing.
Greek yogurt and skyr create the opposite problem: air. A thick product bridges in the supply hopper, draws air into the piston and leaves bubbles that show up as weight variance and pitted cup tops. Keeping the hopper supplied, avoiding free-fall into it and using positive displacement keeps the ±0.5% accuracy stable. Volume-based filling needs consistent density, and an optional weight checker with a feedback loop corrects drift.
Live cultures are a formulation and cold-chain matter more than a filler matter. The machine does not heat your product; its job is to keep time out of refrigeration short and protect texture. Any live and active culture claim rests on your recipe, process and distribution temperatures, and some strains are oxygen-sensitive, so talk with us before specifying a nitrogen flush.
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 quoteFruit-on-Bottom and Multi-Component Yogurt Cups
Fruit-on-bottom yogurt needs two products in one cup in the right order. The SDH-R has up to three filling stations in one pass, so the fruit prep goes into the cup first and the yogurt is deposited on top at the next station. The third station is available for a garnish such as granola, nuts or seeds.
- Volumetric piston filler (standard): yogurt, fruit prep and other liquids and pastes.
- Garnish filler (optional): granola, nuts, seeds, herbs and chunky toppings.
- Peristaltic pump (optional): liquid toppings such as syrups and sauces.
- Vibration filler (optional): powders such as spice or flavor blends.
- Custom engineered-to-order fillers for unusual products.
Large-bore valving passes particulates such as fruit pieces and nut fragments. The limit is piece size relative to the valve and nozzle, so give us your fruit-prep specification early. Yogurt that is blended with fruit before filling (a stirred fruit yogurt) is simpler still, since one filler handles it.
For cups with several distinct layers, see our page on layered parfait cups.
Yogurt Cup Sealing Machine Options: Roll Film, Pre-Cut Lids and Snap-On Lids
The SDH-R is a yogurt cup sealing machine as well as a filler. You choose the closing system when you order, and several can be combined on one cup.
Roll-film membrane sealing
Film is cut from a roll and heat sealed to the cup flange, giving a tamper-evident closure. Seal quality depends on temperature, pressure and dwell time, matched to the film's sealant layer and your cup material. Yogurt makes this harder than a dry product because moisture and fat on the flange weaken the seal, which is why a clean, drip-free fill matters.
Pre-cut lids
The machine also accepts pre-die-cut lids in film or other material. If you want a foil-style lid, we confirm the specific lid and cup-flange combination with your actual samples before quoting, rather than assuming compatibility.
Snap-on and over-top lids
A plastic lid pick-and-place and a snapping device for over-top lids close the cup after the film seal. This gives consumers a reclosable lid over a tamper-evident membrane, which suits larger tubs. Our automatic cup sealing machine page covers the options in more detail.
Cold Chain, MAP and Shelf Life for Cultured Products
Yogurt is a refrigerated product, and the yogurt filling machine is only one link in the cold chain. The SDH-R is for fresh and refrigerated cups filled at a pumpable temperature. Keep the product tank, supply lines and hopper cold, and move sealed cups to a chiller quickly after discharge.
Optional nitrogen flushing is available, and the container MAP system reduces residual oxygen to 0.3 to 0.4%. Yogurt's acidity already limits many spoilage organisms, so MAP is less central than it is for hummus, where it can extend refrigerated shelf life from roughly 7 to 10 days to 30 to 45+ days. We do not quote a yogurt shelf-life figure: your formulation, cultures and distribution temperatures set it. Our MAP cup filler page explains when it earns its cost.
Flavor Changeover and Allergen Control on a Multi-SKU Line
Most yogurt brands run many flavors on one line. The HMI stores recipes, and changeover between SKUs is under about 15 minutes. How much of that applies to a flavor swap depends on where the flavor lives. If the white mass stays the same and the flavor is in a fruit filler, only the fruit side needs cleaning; if flavor is blended into the yogurt, the whole product path does.
The machine is built from food-grade 304 stainless steel with CIP and tool-free strip-down, and an optional CIP system is available. Milk is a major allergen, and cross-contact between flavors carrying tree nuts, peanuts or soy matters more than the yogurt itself. The SDH-R is designed to support plants operating under HACCP, FDA FSMA Preventive Controls (21 CFR Part 117), SQF or BRCGS, and Canada's Safe Food for Canadians Regulations; it is not itself certified to those schemes. See certifications and compliance.
How Many Yogurt Cups per Hour Can One Machine Fill?
The table converts the 18 to 25 CPM real-world range into cups and product per hour. It is plain arithmetic on the stated output and a typical fill weight, not a guarantee. The 5.3 oz (150 g) cup is common for single-serve Greek yogurt; it sits inside the 50 g to 500 g fill range and uses matching tooling.
Approximate hourly throughput at 18-25 CPM
| Cup size | Approx. fill weight | Cups per hour | Product per hour |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 oz | 113 g | 1,080 - 1,500 | about 120 - 170 kg (270 - 375 lb) |
| 5.3 oz | 150 g | 1,080 - 1,500 | about 160 - 225 kg (355 - 495 lb) |
| 8 oz | 227 g | 1,080 - 1,500 | about 245 - 340 kg (540 - 750 lb) |
| 16 oz | 454 g | 1,080 - 1,500 | about 490 - 680 kg (1,080 - 1,500 lb) |
A single-filler yogurt filling machine like this fits a producer with several SKUs and moderate volume per SKU. Larger tubs lengthen the fill stroke, which can pull real-world output toward the lower end of the range.
When Another Yogurt Packaging Machine Is the Better Choice
A good yogurt packaging machine decision includes knowing what the SDH-R does not do. We would rather tell you now than after a purchase order.
- Above 30 CPM on a single SKU: an inline cup filling machine suits sustained high volume; our rotary versus inline comparison explains the trade-off.
- Drinkable yogurt in bottles: the SDH-R is a cup machine, not a bottle filler.
- Aseptic or shelf-stable yogurt: the SDH-R is not aseptic and does not claim retort or UHT-style processing.
- Frozen yogurt: frozen product handling is not part of the machine.
- Cups that need thermoforming: the SDH-R uses pre-formed cups and does not thermoform them.
- Fills below 50 g: 1 oz cups are outside the standard range, and 2 oz portion cups sit at the low end.
If none of those apply, the SDH-R is built for your situation: refrigerated cups, multiple flavors, moderate volume, and fill, seal and lid in one footprint.
Get a Quote for a Yogurt Cup Filling and Sealing Machine
We serve yogurt producers in the USA and Canada from Calgary, with service centres in Alberta, New Jersey and California. See our US service coverage and Canadian service coverage for details.
- Send your yogurt style, cup size, target cups per minute and any options such as a fruit filler or MAP.
- Our team may reach out to learn more about your application before quoting.
- You receive a reply within about 24 hours.
- Delivery is 8 to 12 weeks from order confirmation, and the machine carries a 12-month warranty.
Request a quote, call +1 (888) 922-7271 or email sales@hummuspack.com. Hours are Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM MDT. You can also contact our engineering team with sample cups and lids.
Yogurt Filling Machine — Frequently Asked Questions
The SDH-R yogurt filling machine starts from $45,000 USD for the single-filler configuration. The price rises with additional fillers such as a fruit prep or garnish filler, nitrogen MAP, labeling equipment, a weight checker, CIP and custom cup tooling. Send your cup size and target speed for a specific quote.
The SDH-R runs up to 30 cups per minute on a dry cycle, and 18 to 25 cups per minute is the realistic range depending on yogurt style, cup size, fill weight and options. At 18 to 25 CPM that is 1,080 to 1,500 cups per hour. Above 30 CPM on one SKU, an inline line fits better.
Yes. Greek yogurt and skyr are thick, so the servo-driven positive-displacement piston is a good match. The engineering concerns are air entrainment and how product reaches the filler, which we review against your viscosity and fill temperature before quoting. Fill accuracy is ±0.5% on the 50 g to 500 g range.
Yes. The SDH-R has up to three fillers in one pass, so fruit prep can go into the cup first and yogurt on top, with an optional third station for granola, nuts or seeds. Wide-bore valving passes fruit pieces; give us the largest piece size so we confirm the valve and nozzle.
No. The SDH-R fills pre-formed cups and tubs only; it is not a bottle filler. A drinkable-style product sold in a sealed cup may be possible, and our engineering team confirms that case. For bottled drinkable yogurt you need a bottling line.
The SDH-R heat-seals film cut from a roll for a tamper-evident membrane, or applies pre-die-cut lids, and can add a snap-on plastic lid. Foil-style lids are confirmed against your actual cup and lid samples before quoting, because seal compatibility depends on the sealant layer and flange.
Changeover between SKUs is under about 15 minutes, with fill weights stored as recipes on the HMI. Construction is 304 stainless steel with CIP and tool-free strip-down, and an optional CIP system is available. Flavors containing tree nuts, peanuts or soy need allergen-aware cleaning procedures set by your plant.
Delivery is 8 to 12 weeks from order confirmation, and the machine carries a 12-month warranty. It is made in Canada, with service centres in Alberta, New Jersey and California. Contact our team to confirm timing for your configuration.
Related machines & guides
Explore the pages most relevant to this application.
Why producers buy from Hummus Pack
Ready to Quote Your Yogurt Filling Machine?
Get a personalized SDH-R configuration and price for your product, cup sizes, and production volume.