**Ellen Pompeo Detained by TSA over Sunflower Seeds Incident**

Ellen Pompeo recently shared a surprising travel ordeal where she was detained by the TSA after trying to board a flight with sunflower seeds in her carry-on. The incident took place in March and added an unexpected twist to the Grey's Anatomy star's travel plans.

In a detailed interview with Travel + Leisure, Ellen recounted how her organic sunflower seeds triggered the alarms during the TSA screening process. Despite her offer to discard the seeds, officials insisted on involving the bomb squad to examine the situation. Ellen referred to the seeds as "probably the most expensive sunflower seeds money can buy," hinting at their high-end origins from Erewhon.

She described the experience as bewildering, explaining, "They literally held me for an hour, and they brought the bomb squad in. I was like: 'What is happening? Is this a joke?'" Officials later informed her that the issue likely stemmed from a chemical on the packaging of the seeds.

The delay was significant enough that Ellen almost missed her flight and found herself texting her publicist about the bizarre situation. "It was really like no one would ever believe this! I was texting my publicist saying: 'I might not get on this plane, and you're never gonna guess why,'" she added.

Fortunately, Ellen did make it to her flight, although the experience undoubtedly left a mark. She shared that she'll be more cautious about packing sunflower seeds in her carry-on in the future.

Despite this hiccup, Ellen remains an avid traveler. She also shared her plane essentials, which include "mints, glasses, water, hand sanitizer, and baby wipes" and admitted to following Naomi Campbell's routine of wiping down the entire seat.

Have you ever faced a similarly bizarre TSA incident with harmless items? Share your stories in the comments below!