TSA lets security guards decide how much pumped milk you can take on board.

This is supposed to be an improvement?

You probably recall that in the wake of a foiled liquid bomb plot, the TSA began restricting the amount of liquids passengers could take on board.  This led to stories of mothers having to dump out their pumped milk at the airport, or going to great lengths to freeze, package, and ship milk home.

The TSA website now says that "medications, baby formula and food, breast milk, and juice are allowed in reasonable quantities exceeding three ounces."

The New York Times reports that the current TSA rules on how much breastmilk a mother can bring on board were designed to be "purposely unspecific to give the security officer discretion" in determining how much pumped milk mothers can bring on board. 

The Times reports:

Caren Begun, a public relations executive in Jersey City who had a baby last year, said the lack of specificity made it difficult for her to figure out what to do. “On the Web site, they say you can travel with reasonable quantities of breast milk, but what does that mean?” Ms. Begun asked. “How much milk can I bring on board? What about ice packs? Will I have to taste the milk to show it’s safe? I got a different answer from everyone.”

How can a mother plan her carry-on and checked baggage if she's not sure how the particular guard on duty in her line will define "reasonable quantities?"  I have a feeling that we'll see more stories of milk being dumped into the garbage again.

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