Last Updated on November 5, 2021
Yogurt comes in various degrees of thickness.
On the one hand, you have greek yogurt which is a thick and creamy yogurt.
And on the other, you have something like Yakult which is a pourable drinking yogurt.
So can you freely bring yogurt on a plane in your carry-on bag or does it get caught by the TSA liquids rule?
Let’s find out.
TSA Yogurt Rules
The Transportation Security Administration runs the airport security checkpoint.
They have a rule about liquids. You can only bring liquids on containers less than 3.4 oz in carry-on bags.
So the real question is…
Does the TSA consider yogurt to be a liquid?
Here is what the TSA says about yogurt on their website:
All yogurt is considered to be a liquid by the TSA. Greek yogurt, Yakult, Yoplait, Chobani, Sheep’s Yogurt, Goat’s Yogurt… it doesn’t matter.
That means you can only pack containers of yogurt that are 3.4 oz or less in your carry-on luggage.
You need to pack any yogurt in your quart-size toiletries bag.
You can pack larger containers of yogurt in checked luggage without restriction. Just make sure they don’t spill everywhere!
How To Bring More Than 3.4 ounces of Yogurt In Hand Luggage
There are a few ways you can take more yogurt on a plane in your carry-on.
They might be a little impractical but here they are anyway.
Split Your Yogurt It Into Multiple Travel-Size Containers
You can bring as many travel-size containers of yogurt as you can fit into your quart-size bag.
To do that you’d need to pour the yogurt into multiple containers. The little plastic 3 oz containers are for baby food but they’d work well for yogurt too.
You could probably fit 6 or 7 of those 3 oz tubs in your quart-size bag. If you don’t take any other toiletries! That’s quite a lot of yogurt when you add it all up!
Freeze Your Yogurt When Going Through Airport Security
The TSA liquids rule is for fluids, gels, and spreads.
But when you freeze yogurt it becomes solid.
That means if your yogurt is frozen solid at the time you go through airport security the TSA officer will let it past.
The difficulty is getting your yogurt to security without it melting! Ice packs or dry ice could help.
Bring An Infant Or Toddler With You
If you have a small child handy they are your ticket to getting yogurt through airport security.
Simply claim that the yogurt is for the small child and the TSA will allow it to pass through airport security in containers larger than 3.4 oz.
You need to put baby food in a separate bin for additional screening.
Just one thing, the infant must not be able to walk through airport security unassisted by an adult. That’s how the TSA judges when a child has become too old to qualify for the liquids rule exemptions.
Still Unsure? Ask The TSA
You can send the TSA a message on Twitter about any food that you want to bring on the plane.
They are really good at getting back to you quickly with an answer.
Devin wanted to bring some sour cream on the plane for her mom:
The TSA told her the bad news that the maximum container limit was 3.4 oz. Hopefully, she realized she could split the container into 4 small containers.
Amber asked about packing these yogurt cups for her toddler.
At 3.5 oz they would be too large for an adult to bring. Yes the TSA is that strict!
But since they are for a child they will get a pass. Yogurts for infants don’t need to be packed in the ziploc bag.
Julie couldn’t understand how frozen yogurt was allowed on the plane but liquid yogurt was limited to 3.4 oz.
The answer, as Michellee points out, is because you can’t freeze flammable liquids.
The TSA can’t check that every yogurt pot really is yogurt and not a dangerous liquid in disguise.
Their solution is simply to limit the quantity of all liquids so that if any of the bad guys get on the plane they can only make a small one. And I’m not talking about overnight oats 🙂
Traveling Internationally With Yogurt
Regardless of where you pack your yogurt if you are traveling internationally, you should check the agricultural import rules of your destination country.
The US Department of Agriculture doesn’t want you bringing home any yogurt from countries where they have foot and mouth disease. They are worried about importing the disease into the US via your yogurt!
Similar rules may exist for other countries.
Of course, one solution is to eat the yogurt on the plane!
The Bottom Line
Yogurt, even thick greek yogurt, is considered a liquid by the TSA.
That means you must pack it in your quart-size liquids bag and it can only be in containers 3.4 ounces or less.
You can bring more than one 3.4 oz container of yogurt but they all must go in your quart-size bag. Throw out that shampoo and you’ll be able to fit more yogurt!
Yogurt for infants and toddlers gets a free pass. Maybe if you ask nicely your toddler will let you have one!