So you’re getting ready to go on holiday? How fun! While packing shoes, clothes and personal care items are quite easy, traveling with homemade baby formula is definitely a bit trickier!
Packing the 14 different ingredients used to make the homemade baby formula can definitely pose a challenge to even the most organized parent.
What if you are flying a long distance with fresh milk for more than just a day or two? How in the world do you pull that off?
Careful planning of exactly how much formula you will use while you are out of town and the most effective method of transporting it with the least amount of hassle will save you from {gasp} having to resort to commercial formula as a stop-gap while you are away.
Resorting to commercial formula while on vacation even if organic, when your baby is accustomed to the whole, nourishing homemade formula, is sure to wreck your vacation with sleepless nights and colicky days from a very gassy and uncomfortable baby.
Don’t risk it!
And, have you heard that even organic commercial baby formulas use genetically modified ingredients? (1)
You just cannot trust anything made in a factory anymore, especially if it’s for your precious baby!
There are just way too many loopholes and games manufacturers play to get around the rules. If you need decent baby formula, you must make it yourself and this includes while you are traveling!
Resign yourself to the fact that when you travel, you must figure out a way to take these homemade baby formula ingredients with you.
Here are a few tips and ideas that may help you make the process a little less stressful:
Easy Traveling With the Homemade Formula
- Ask a friend or relative at your destination to source the ingredients you need before you arrive. This is probably the easiest way to travel by not having to take anything with you and having the ingredients ready to go upon your arrival.
- If you don’t have a friend or relative at your destination who is on board with the importance of the homemade baby formula, contact a local Weston A. Price Foundation Chapter Leader at your destination and ask if there are any Moms in that area you could contact ahead of time who are currently using the formula who could source the ingredients for you.
- If there are no Moms at your destination who are using the homemade formula, try to at least find someone who has access to raw milk who can have some fresh raw milk ready for you when you arrive. Then, you only have to travel with the rest of the ingredients which are far less bulky.
- Consider shipping all the ingredients for the homemade formula from Radiant Life to your destination and have them waiting for you. Â Then, all you have to worry about is the raw milk.
What To Do If You Must Take ALL the Ingredients With You.
- When traveling with homemade formula, pack all the ingredients except the raw milk and the liquid whey in a small carry-on bag.  The oils do not travel well if checked at baggage claim (I know this from experience) and tend to leak all over the place no matter how securely you fasten the lids.  If questioned at security, just say they are particular foods required because of a special diet.  Pack the oils in the labeled bottles they come in and put each in a separate ziplock bag just to be safe in case they leak.  You don’t want any unmarked bottles that might be taken away by TSA.
- The remaining dry ingredients should be included in the separate, small carry-on bag as well.  Keep the ingredients in the containers they come in so that security can see what they are.  You don’t want some zealous TSA official taking away your lactose, for example, thinking it is cocaine because it is in an unlabeled ziplock bag!  I know this seems funny and perhaps far-fetched, but stranger things have happened at airport security!
- Include several glass bottles of already prepared homemade formula in ziplock bags with ice packs in the small carry-on bag. You never know when your flight will be delayed so you need to have an ample supply of formula already made in case you don’t arrive on schedule and your baby gets hungry.  You can always get a cup of hot water at an airport cafe to quickly warm up one of the glass bottles for your baby if need be.
- Freeze the amount of raw milk and liquid whey you need for the entire trip and place these containers (not glass) in the smallest cooler you can and tape it shut with packing tape.  Remove any labels that indicate the milk is raw to save yourself any questioning or hassle from TSA if traveling to a state with different laws on raw milk than your own.  TSA won’t be able to tell the milk is raw from just looking at it and will assume it is pasteurized.  Make sure you put your name and destination address on the cooler as well. Check the cooler at baggage claim. The milk will stay safely frozen for the duration of your trip and you can quickly thaw some in a sinkful of warm water when you arrive at your destination.
Don’t Forget About Water and the Blender!
One of the key ingredients in the homemade baby formula is clean, pure, filtered water.  If you can’t be sure about the water source where you are traveling, don’t forget to take some of your own with you!  Freeze it and put it in the cooler with the raw milk and liquid whey and plan to check it at baggage claim.
Be sure to double-check that your destination has measuring spoons, cups and an appropriate blending device. Â Take your own if in doubt.
Do you have tips for traveling with homemade formula? Â Please add your experiences in the comments section for other parents to read and learn from!
Never Heard of Homemade Formula Before?
Do you think making your own baby formula will be too time-consuming or costly?
The fact is that it only takes about 10 minutes to make a batch once you learn how. Budget-wise, making a top-quality, wholesome homemade formula costs about half what the organic commercial formulas cost per ounce!
I recommend sourcing your ingredients from this vetted source to ensure quality.
Happy travels!
Reference
(1) GMOs in Organic Baby Food
More Information
Feeding an Adopted Baby without Commercial Formula
Homemade Nondairy Baby Formula
Goat Milk Formula
High Levels of Arsenic in Organic Baby Formula
I am currently making homemade formula – the first batch I did not have whey. The second batch I added the whey. After I heat it to give to my little one it seems to have curds.. what did I do???? Is it the whey?
Yes, sounds like you used cheese whey (which is not raw as it has been cooked already) or you heated the formula too hot which cooked the whey and caused the curdling.
Hi
How many hours will the homemade formula last in room temperature?
It would be safe for an hour or so.
So I’m moving in 2 weeks from FL to CA and I’m trying to figure out the logistics of how I can continue using the formula once we get to California. We will be staying in a hotel for 2 weeks before moving in to a house. I have everything figured out, except I’m not sure how I can dissolve the lactose if I have no stove. I don’t use microwaves, even if only temporary. Any suggestions? Can this be left out? Or could this cause digestive issues?
Hi Jennifer 🙂 Have you considered an inexpensive single hot plate? I think it would depend on your baby if it would be a problem to leave it out, personally I would be okay with a day or two in an older baby but not two weeks. Good Luck!
hi I am new to the home made formula experience my question is this how do you travel with homemade formula for short. Of time in town on errands small trips etc anywhere from 2 to 8 hours a day.
Hi Veronika, I made homemade formula for a year and a half for my third child. I would pack the pre made bottles for the day in a bottle cooler with an ice pack, then use a bottle warmer that plugs into the car to slightly heat them before serving. Hope that helps 🙂
Is it safe to freeze several batches of homemade formula? Or should it be made fresh each day?
I want to know this too! It gets to be a lot of work to make one batch a day. It was be easier to make a few up and freeze them.
I currently feed my 2yr old a goat milk formula ,after realizing her intolerance to dairy. She was born premature , with a diagnose of Down’s syndrome . I breast feed her until January .she grew and developed very well until this point. She became constipated ,lost weight and no longer thrived.her digestion and eating patterns have been abnormal. We saw great improvement at first when we introduced the goat. Milk,but with any slight change in diet she becomes extremely constipated. Do you have any suggestions? Recipe – fortified frolic acid goat milk ,turban ado sugar, coconut oil olive oil,blackstrap molasses
Hey Sarah!
Is it possible to mix up the water with the dry ingredients and the oils, and THEN add the milk/cream/whey once you reach the destination? I’ve never tried it, but if I could prepare that and then get the raw milk sourced once I arrive, that would help a lot. I’m just not sure if it would still turn out the same way!
Thank you!