We live an age of heightened security at airports, with strict rules on what can and can’t be carried in hand luggage. For a new mum planning an international trip these rules and regulations can be quite confusing, considering that items such as expressed milk, sterile water and baby food may indeed at first glance break these rules.
I breastfed my daughter for the first 6 months, so my main concern for our first couple of flights was ensuring that I had enough water to remain hydrated on the flight in order to feed her. I didn’t bother trying to take water through airport security because it would have broken the rules, plus large bottles of water can easily be purchased once you have passed security. There did, however, come a point where I needed to take baby food on board a flight, and this is what I discovered – you CAN take baby food, baby milk and sterilised water (must be in a baby bottle) in your hand luggage. It does not need to be in a zip lock bag and you are allowed to take enough to cover the entire journey, which in many cases is over 100ml. The only catch is that you may be asked by security to taste test.
I have on occasion been asked to open pouches of baby food and the only annoyance of this is the product (without refrigeration) needs to be consumed more or less immediately, not helpful for a long haul flight. I have also heard of an instance where a friend was asked to open 3 (of the 5) readymade cartons of formula milk she was carrying which instantly made the product unusable and she had to purchase more from a pharmacy in the departures lounge.
For more information on liquid restrictions, please see the links below:
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