While several authorities have recently alluded to the fact that the three-one-one liquid rule may eventually be scrapped, the requirement that any non-solid items brought aboard a plane fit within a container of no more than 3.4 ounces or 100 milliliters continues to cause airport delays among confused travelers.

At the start of the summer, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) reiterated that popular snacks such as hummus, yogurt, cream cheese, and various creamy dips and spreads can all be flagged during security screening.

We are a number of weeks away from the government agency’s annual reminder about leaving the cranberry sauce and mashed potatoes behind when returning home from Thanksgiving dinner.

Still, the TSA’s latest update focuses on a simple dessert that passengers have in recent months increasingly been trying to bring onto their flights: those small cups of pudding.

“Passengers may bring solid foods such as hard candies, pretzels, or potato chips”: TSA

“If you can spill it, spray it, spread it, pump it or pour it, then it is a liquid and must be packed in your checked bag,” the TSA states for its guidance on what constitutes a liquid on its website. “As always, passengers may bring solid foods such as hard candies, pretzels, or potato chips through the checkpoint.”

While yogurts and dips are more frequently used as examples of no-go liquid foods on the agency’s website, the TSA periodically takes to social media to respond to questions about individual items that frequently come up among travelers.

“We’re finally puddin’ this one to rest!” the TSA wrote in one of its X posts on the subject. “Desserts such as tapioca/custard/mousse (which also adhere to our liquids rule) are allowed in carry-on bags.”

Related: TSA says these six popular snacks are banned from planes

The TSA is referring to a single pudding cup that is 3.4 ounces or less, which would be part of the one-quart bag of liquids allowed in a passenger’s carry-on.

If someone wants to bring multiple pudding cups on a trip, they should pack them in a checked bag. Although an individual portion may be small enough to be brought aboard as a snack, a full package of several cups will almost certainly be flagged and thrown out by a TSA officer.

Pudding cups are considered a liquid for the purpose of airport security.

Image source: Shutterstock

“Travelers are encouraged to organize their carry-on bags and keep them uncluttered”

“TSA officers may instruct travelers to separate items from carry-on bags such as foods, powders, and any materials that can clutter bags and obstruct clear images on the X-ray machine,” the agency currently writes of popular snack foods on its website. 

“Travelers are encouraged to organize their carry-on bags and keep them uncluttered to ease the screening process and keep the lines moving.”

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The liquid rule was enacted in September 2006 as part of George W. Bush’s antiterrorism measures in the wake of the 9/11 attacks; at the time, authorities foiled several plots in which terrorists tried to smuggle explosives in a water bottle through an airport.

As the years passed and scanning technologies improved, airports around the world have slowly started to scrap the liquid rule. 

Some airports in Spain, The Netherlands, and the United Kingdom that have been fully equipped with a new type of 3D scanner now allow travelers to bring up to two liters of liquids.

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