5 ON YOUR SIDE: Packaged snacks

Parents know how convenient packaged snacks can be for feeding hungry kids. But what’s actually in those products may go beyond what’s written on the label. A new Consumer Reports investigation found potentially harmful contaminants in some popular children’s snacks.

Earlier this summer, Consumer Reports testing found high levels of additives and contaminants in popular processed snack foods. Now, Consumer Reports’ food safety scientists have taken a closer look specifically at snacks marketed to or commonly eaten by children.

Consumer Reports tested 21 packaged kids’ snacks and found that...