Green Bay News

PITTSBURGH (AP) – The federal government has ordered the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium to not use cattle dogs to cause its elephants “behavioral stress.”

The inspection report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture was released Monday by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. PETA complained about the practice late last year.

According to the Jan. 7 inspection report, the zoo was ordered to stop using the dogs to “cause behavioral stress.”

Zoo president and CEO Barbara Baker says the incident in question stemmed from a drill involving an “extreme and unlikely situation” and that the dogs are generally used to ensure a “calm and controlled interaction” between elephants and their handlers.

The inspection report shows a USDA official found that dogs growled and lunged at the elephants, causing stress, when one reached its trunk through the bars of its enclosure.

GREEN LAKE – A suspect in a deer poaching case pleaded not guilty Monday to 74 misdmeanor and ordinance violation charges.

No trial date was set for Steven Steger. He was released on a signature bond, according to online court records.

Steger faces 74 counts in all, including 16 misdemeanor counts of illegal shining. The ordinance violations including multiple counts of hunting within 50 feet of the road,  hunting after hours, discharge weapon from vehicle, and fail to make effort to retrieve downed game.

Another man, Grant Boese, faces 128 counts in all, including 14 misdemeanor counts of failure to obtain a hunting license, 16 misdemeanor counts of illegal shining and two misdemeanor counts of failing to tag. The ordinance violations including multiple counts of hunting after revocation, hunting within 50 feet of the road,  hunting after hours, discharge weapon from vehicle, and fail to make effort to retrieve downed game. His initial appearance is set for Feb. 9.

The two allegedly shot 15 deer, texted photos of them, kept the empty shell casings, and hid several deer with brush and snow, according to the criminal complaints.

A third man, Cody Johnston, was charged previously in connection with a subsequent chase, but has not been charged with the deer deaths.

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe defended his policy toward terrorism, as the flag at his official residence flew at half-staff Monday in a mark of mourning for two hostages killed by the Islamic State group.

During a long day of parliamentary debate, Abe parried numerous questions about his handling of the hostage crisis, which came to a grisly end with news early Sunday that journalist Kenji Goto had been beheaded by the extremists.

Abe said his announcement of $200 million in non-military aid for the fight against the Islamic State group, made during a visit to the Middle East just days before the militants demanded a $200 million ransom for the two hostages, was meant to convey Japan’s strong commitment to battling terrorism and fostering peace and stability in the region.

Some have questioned that decision, saying Abe should have been more cautious and not mentioned the Islamic State group by name.

Responding to a question by an opposition lawmaker, Abe confirmed that he was aware of the hostage situation when he made the announcement.

Abe said he wished to publicize Japan’s contribution to the fight against extremism, and rejected the idea of a more cautious approach.

“As international society seeks to restore peace and stability in the Middle East … I thought it would be the most appropriate destination to visit, and that I should broadcast my message to the world from there,” Abe said. “I thought announcing Japan’s contribution to fulfill its responsibility would contribute to the international community’s effort to fight against terrorism and prevent its expansion.”

Abe said he did not see an increased terrorist risk following threats in a purported Islamic State group video that vowed to target Japanese and make the knife Goto’s killer was wielding Japan’s “nightmare.”

“The terrorists are criminals,” Abe said. “We are determined to pursue them and hold them accountable.”

Still, Japan has ordered heightened security precautions for airports and other public transport and at Japanese facilities overseas, such as embassies and schools.

The government also has called on journalists and others in areas near the conflict to withdraw, given the risk of further kidnappings and other threats.

The flag outside Abe’s official residence was lowered to half-staff to mourn Goto and the other hostage, gun aficionado and adventurer Haruna Yukawa, who reportedly was killed earlier.

Goto’s wife, Rinko Jogo, said in a statement released Monday that she was devastated but proud of her husband.

Jogo requested privacy for her family as they deal with their loss, and thanked those who had supported them.

“I remain extremely proud of my husband, who reported the plight of people in conflict areas like Iraq, Somalia and Syria,” she said in the statement, issued through the British-based journalist group Rory Peck Trust.

“It was his passion to highlight the effects on ordinary people, especially through the eyes of children, and to inform the rest of us of the tragedies of war,” she said.

Goto left for Syria in late October, just a few weeks after the birth of the couple’s youngest daughter, apparently hoping to rescue Yukawa, who had been seized by the militants last summer. Soon after, he was captured by the extremists.

CHICAGO (AP) — Many packaged meals and snacks for toddlers contain worrisome amounts of salt and sugar, potentially creating an early taste for foods that may contribute to obesity and other health risks, according to a new government study.

About seven in 10 toddler dinners studied contained too much salt, and most cereal bars, breakfast pastries and snacks for infants and toddlers contained extra sugars, according to the study by researchers at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They advise parents to read food labels carefully and select healthier choices.

The researchers analyzed package information and labels for more than 1,000 foods marketed for infants and toddlers. Results appear in the journal Pediatrics on Monday.

The study notes that almost one in four U.S. children ages 2 to 5 are overweight or obese — and that almost 80 percent of kids ages 1 to 3 exceed the recommended maximum level of daily salt, which is 1,500 milligrams. Excess sugar and salt can contribute to obesity and elevated blood pressure even in childhood, but also later on.

“We also know that about one in nine children have blood pressure above the normal range for their age, and that sodium, excess sodium, is related to increased blood pressure,” said the CDC’s Mary Cogswell, the study’s lead author.

The researchers collected data on foods available in 2012. They didn’t list brand names, but foods studied included popular brands of baby food, toddler dinners including packaged macaroni and cheese, mini hot dogs, rice cakes, crackers, dried fruit snacks and yogurt treats.

The Grocery Manufacturers of America, a trade group whose members include makers of foods for infants and toddlers, issued a statement saying the study “does not accurately reflect the wide range of healthy choices available in today’s marketplace … because it is based on 2012 data that does not reflect new products with reduced sodium levels.”

The study “could needlessly alarm and confuse busy parents as they strive to develop suitable meal options that their children will enjoy,” the group said.

The researchers said theirs is the most recent, comprehensive data on commercial foods for young children. Cogswell acknowledged there have been some improvements in the marketplace and said the findings aren’t all negative.

Foods for toddlers should contain no more than about 210 milligrams of salt or sodium per serving, under Institute of Medicine recommendations, but the average for toddler meals studied was 361 milligrams — almost 1.5 times higher than that limit. Sodium amounts per serving ranged from 100 milligrams to more than 900 milligrams.

High sugar content was defined as more than 35 percent of calories per portion coming from sugar, based on Institute of Medicine guidelines for foods served in schools. Many foods in the study exceeded that. On average, sugar contributed 47 percent of calories for infant mixed grains and fruit; 66 percent of calories in dried fruit snacks, and more than 35 percent of calories in dairy-based desserts.

Also, about one in three toddler dinners and most toddler cereal bars and dried fruit-based snacks contained at least one added sugar.

Added sugars, including high fructose corn syrup, dextrose and glucose, raised concerns because they boost calorie totals without health benefits.

NEW YORK (AP) — New England’s thrilling win over Seattle scored the highest-ever overnight television ratings for a Super Bowl and also set conversation milestones for Twitter and Facebook.

The Nielsen company said Monday the game had a 49.7 rating in the nation’s largest media markets, up 4 percent over last year’s game. That means nearly half of the homes in those 56 metropolitan areas were watching the game.

It’s an early indication that the game may be on the way to another viewership record. Last year’s contest between Seattle and Denver was seen by 111.5 million people, the annual game setting a record for the most-watched TV event in U.S. history for the fourth time in five years. Nielsen expected a viewership estimate later on Monday.

Facebook said an estimated 65 million people conversed about the game on the social media site, more than any other Super Bowl and second only to two World Cup games last year for most talked-about events. There were some 265 million individual posts, comments or “likes,” Facebook said.

The moment drawing the most Facebook comments was just after the Patriots sealed the 28-24 victory, with the second being when Katy Perry soared through stadium for her “Firework” finale to the Super Bowl halftime show.

Twitter estimated there were 28.4 million tweets posted between the kickoff and 30 minutes after the game’s conclusion, surpassing last year’s game to be the most tweeted-about Super Bowl ever. It was second only to the 35.6 million tweets sent about last year’s World Cup semifinal between Brazil and Germany.

Malcolm Butler’s game-saving interception in the last minute really set the Twitter engines revving, with an estimated 395,000 tweets per minute, with 379,000 tweets per minute coming when the game actually ended, Twitter said.

Meanwhile, the digital video recorder maker TiVo reported that the top commercial played back by its users was Budweiser’s “lost dog” spot. The second most played-back was the public service announcement about domestic violence involving a woman’s 911 call for help.

Given the game’s large audience, that indicates the ad was a real conversation-starter on the issue of domestic violence, said Tara Maitra, TiVo’s senior vice president and general manager of content and media sales.

TiVo’s ad ranking is also a reflection of the more serious tone taken by advertisers, she said. In the past, humorous and sometimes raunchy ads have generated the most TiVo playbacks.

DETROIT (AP) — More than 1,100 claims were filed in the week before Saturday’s deadline to seek payments from the General Motors ignition-switch compensation fund. So far, 51 death and 77 injury claims have been granted.

But the fund’s deputy administrator says the number of granted claims is likely to rise as she and her boss, compensation expert Kenneth Feinberg, sort through at least 4,180 claims that came before the deadline passed.

The last-minute flurry of activity is common in compensation cases, said Deputy Administrator Camille Biros, who has worked with Feinberg on funds for the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the BP oil spill. Although most of the claims were filed electronically, some will “trickle in” in the coming days because they were postmarked by the Jan. 31 deadline, she said.

“I can say that there will likely be more” death and injury claims granted, Biros said. “Until we sort through and review the newly submitted documents, we can’t make that estimation.”

GM was aware of faulty ignition switches on Chevrolet Cobalts and other small cars for more than a decade, but it didn’t recall them until 2014. On 2.6 million of them worldwide, the switches can slip out of the “on” position, causing the cars to stall, knocking out power steering and turning off the air bags.

As of Sunday, the fund had received 455 death claims and 3,447 for injuries. Of the total, Feinberg has decided that about 12 percent, or 482, aren’t eligible for payment. Another 965 have deficient information, while 1,502 were turned in without documentation. Another 1,103 claims are under review, according to a posting on the fund’s website.

People will be given several chances to provide information to back up their claims, Biros said. Most of the claims that have been denied were not models covered by the fund or the air bags inflated in the crashes. If the air bags deployed, that means the cars had power and the ignition switches were working and not at fault, Feinberg has said.

About 40 claims have been paid thus far, but Biros would not say how much money had been paid out. GM also would not say how much the company has paid thus far.

It likely will take until late spring for Biros and Feinberg to sort through all of the claims, she said. There is no deadline for them to make decisions on the claims, Biros said.

About half the death and injury claims that have been granted involve people 25 years old or younger, Biros said. The Cobalt, Saturn Ion and other small cars with the bad switches were sold largely to younger people because they were inexpensive and marketed by GM as being safe. But experts say younger, inexperienced drivers would be less able to handle a car that had stalled and lost its power steering.

Initially, GM had said at least 13 people had died in crashes caused by the switches, but the company has always said the toll would rise. Legislators have estimated that at least 100 people were killed.

Last year GM set aside $400 million to make payments, but conceded that could grow to $600 million. The company’s chief financial officer told analysts earlier this month that those numbers have not changed. Compensation for deaths starts at $1 million.

GM has placed no cap on the amount of money he can spend, Feinberg has said.

The GM ignition-switch debacle, which brought congressional and Justice Department investigations and the maximum $35 million fine from the government’s auto-safety agency, touched off a companywide safety review. That brought a total of 84 recalls involving more than 30 million vehicles.

As of last week, GM had fixed just over 56 percent of the 2.19 million cars with faulty ignition switches that are still on the road in the U.S., according to documents filed with federal safety regulators. The company said it could not reach about 80,000 of the car owners.

Still, even with letters, telephone calls and Facebook messages, GM hasn’t been able to get all the owners to have their cars repaired about a year after the recalls started. It’s not unusual for some car owners to ignore recall notices. The average completion rate 1 1/2 years after a recall begins is 75 percent, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

TOWN OF MICHICOT – Deputies in Manitowoc arrested two men involved in a physical altercation involving a gun and a beer bottle early Sunday morning in the Town of Michicot.

On Sunday at 2:30 a.m. deputies responded to the call on Cherney Road.

The Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office says it all started when a 21–year old man hit a 28-year-old man on the head with a beer bottle, causing head injuries. The 21-year-old man left the scene and went to a nearby home to seek help from a friend.

The 28-year-old man went to that home to start another fight. The 28-year-old eventually left, but came back with a .22 caliber rifle. The 28-year-old forced himself into the home and threatened to shoot the 21-year-old. The rifle was fired one round inside the home causing the bullet to hit a cabinet.

When deputies arrived, the two men were physically fighting and officials separated the two.

Both men were transported to a local hospital for medical treatment and later transferred to the Manitowoc County Jail.

MADISON (AP) – Much about what Gov. Scott Walker planned to propose in his state budget remained unknown Monday, but that didn’t stop Democrats from blasting details that have come to light so far and arguing the second-term Republican is focused too much on pleasing a national audience at the expense of Wisconsin as he looks at a presidential run.

Walker was to release his roughly $70 billion, two-year spending plan on Tuesday night in a joint meeting of the Legislature to be broadcast live statewide. The budget faces a shortfall of between about $900 million and $2 billion by mid-2017, based on state agency spending requests. Walker will present a balanced budget proposal to the Legislature on Tuesday, but the big question is what he does to eliminate the projected deficit.

The budget touches the lives of nearly every person in the state. Walker will propose income and sales tax rates as well as funding levels for state and local governments, including K-12 public schools, the University of Wisconsin System, Medicaid and public benefit programs, prisons, economic development initiatives, roads and infrastructure.

Once introduced, the Republican-controlled Legislature will take the next four months putting its stamp on the plan before passing it and sending it back to Walker for his signature likely sometime in June.

While the bulk of Walker’s plan remains secret, he has released some details in advance of Tuesday’s speech.

Walker has said he will propose cutting $300 million from the University of Wisconsin System, about a 13 percent reduction, over the next two years while also freezing tuition. In exchange, Walker wants to give the UW System more freedom from state oversight and laws, a move that university officials have sought for years to give them greater control of their own operations.

Much of the debate in the Legislature is expected to focus on the size of the proposed cut and just how much latitude to give UW as it moves toward a public authority model.

A $300 million cut as Walker proposed will be devastating both to the university and the economy of the state, Democratic lawmakers argued at a Capitol news conference.

While criticizing that and other proposals Walker has made public, Democrats also pushed for their agenda, which includes raising the minimum wage and accepting federal money for Medicaid expansion under the federal health insurance law.

Walker is driven not by what’s best for Wisconsin but what will play well nationally as he bolsters his resume for a 2016 presidential run, said Rep. Chris Taylor, D-Madison, a member of the Legislature’s budget committee.

“He seems more concerned with Iowa primary voters than the state of Wisconsin,” she said, referring to the first presidential caucus vote in 2016. Walker last week announced formation of a tax-exempt committee to boost his presidential aspirations, a move that came as he hired more staff, gave a well-received speech to conservatives in Iowa and made the rounds in Washington, D.C.

Walker’s spokeswoman Laurel Patrick did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Walker has also said that he won’t propose raising any taxes or fees to pay for roads projects, rejecting a recommendation from his own Department of Transportation secretary to do just that. Instead, Walker wants to borrow $1.3 billion over the next two years for transportation projects, a 30 percent increase, while lowering the total amount bonded across state government and putting some early stage construction projects on hold.

Increasing roads bonding has been met with skepticism both from Republicans who control the Legislature and those in the construction industry who had been lobbying Walker and lawmakers for months to look at a variety of other options, including raising the gas tax and vehicle registration fees.

Walker has also said he will propose requiring drug tests for Medicaid, unemployment and other public benefit program recipients, merging a variety of state agencies and borrowing $220 million to help pay for a new stadium for the Milwaukee Bucks.

APPLETON, Wis. (AP) – A judge in Wisconsin has dismissed homicide charges against a Minnesota woman set to go on trial in a 2007 slaying.

Outagamie County Judge Nancy Krueger dismissed the charges Monday against Kandi Siveny, of St. Paul, Minnesota, in the death of Laura Plamann. The judge dismissed the charges with prejudice, meaning they could be refiled in the future. Defense attorney Dan Sanders asked that the dismissal be with prejudice, meaning the charges could not be refiled.

District Attorney Carrie Schneider asked for the dismissal, citing changing facts and evidence. Attorneys tell Post-Crescent Media a similar motion has been filed for Dianna Siveny, Kandi’s mother, also charged in the death.

Plamann was found shot to death in October of 2007 in a shed near the Greenville home she shared with Dianna Siveny, her domestic partner.

Find the schedule for the USBC Masters, a major on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour, at Ashwaubenon Bowling Alley.

MADISON (AP) – Democrats are speaking out against various parts of Gov. Scott Walker’s budget the day before the Republican releases his entire plan to the Legislature.

Democrats on Monday say what is known so far about Walker’s plan would not create opportunities for people to succeed in Wisconsin. They say Walker is crafting his budget to appeal nationally as he looks ahead to a possible presidential run.

Democrats are taking particular aim at Walker’s call to cut the University of Wisconsin System funding by 13 percent, or $300 million, borrowing more than $1 billion for roads projects and requiring drug tests for public aid recipients.

Democrats are calling for raising the minimum wage, accepting federal Medicaid money and restoring cuts Walker and Republicans made to public schools.

Walker releases his budget Tuesday.

SUN PRAIRIE (AP) – The mayor of Sun Prairie has learned a valuable lesson about one of his city’s most famous critters.

You don’t want to get too close to a groundhog.

During the Groundhog Day celebration Monday in Sun Prairie, Jimmy’s handler held the groundhog next the face of Mayor Jonathan Freund and Jimmy promptly bit down on the mayor’s ear.

Freund flinched, but went on with his declaration that there would be an early spring due to Jimmy’s prognostication. WISC-TV says the Groundhog Day celebration became even more precarious when Jimmy’s handlers, Jerry and Maria Hahn, said the mayor had gotten it wrong and that there would be six more weeks of winter.

Then the city issued a statement which said only the mayor can translate Jimmy’s prediction.

MADISON (AP) – Wisconsin’s new treasurer has gotten rid of his staff and said he’ll donate part of his salary as state Republicans continue their push to eliminate the office.

The Wisconsin State Journal reports Treasurer Matt Adamczyk, a Republican, eliminated his three-member staff, amounting to a savings of about $168,000. The deputy treasurer, Scott Feldt, resigned, while the other two were laid off.

Adamczyk also said he will give 25 percent of his nearly $69,000 salary to the treasury.

Republicans in the Wisconsin legislature introduced a bill last week to take any references to the Office of State Treasurer out of the state constitution. Adamczyk supports the bill, saying the office’s only duty is to promote Wisconsin’s unclaimed property program.

Adamczyk campaigned on getting rid of the treasurer position. He said he visits his Madison office about twice a week.

“I’m not somebody who says we don’t need government,” said Adamczyk, who served as a legislative aide for 10 years. “”But why would you have positions for people who don’t have any real work?”

Adamczyk, as treasurer, also serves on the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands. He recently advocated that the board end its subscription to The New York Times and remove references to global warming from the board website.

Management of the unclaimed property program was taken away from the treasurer’s office under the previous treasurer, Republican Kurt Schuller, as was administration of the state’s college savings program. Schuller had also said he would work to eliminate the office, but later advocated for restoration of its duties.

Photos submitted to ReportIt, Feb. 1-7, 2015.

Submitted Jan. 30, 2015, by Mark Hoffman, who writes:

“Former Minergy plant in Neenah. It’s a video of the big stack coming down today.”

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago’s weekend blizzard was one for the record books.

The National Weather Service says that the 19.3 inches of snow was the fifth highest snowfall total since records started being kept in the late 1800s.

The Super Bowl Sunday storm’s accumulation beat the previous fifth-largest blizzard of March 1930 by a tenth of an inch.

The city’s biggest blizzard happened in 1967 when 23 inches of snow fell on Jan. 26 to 27. The second-biggest blizzard happened in 1999 when 21.6 inches fell. The third-largest storm was in February 2011, when the weather service recorded 21.2 inches of snow and the fourth-biggest storm was in January 1979 when there was 20.3 inches of snow.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – BMO Financial Group is facing four federal lawsuits filed by investor groups who claim a bank acquired by BMO was complicit in a $3.7 billion Ponzi scheme by a Minnesota man.

BMO acquired Marshall & Ilsley Corp. in 2011 and denies any wrongdoing by M&I, now known as BMO Harris. The lawsuits stem from M&I’s dealings with Tom Petters, who’s serving a 50-year federal prison sentence in Leavenworth, Kansas for masterminding the Ponzi scheme.

One of the lawsuits, seeking $24 billion, claims Petters did not act alone and that M&I legitimized and facilitated Petters’ scheme. BMO spokesman Jim Kappel tells the Journal Sentinel there’s no merit to the lawsuits’ claims.

The 57-year-old Petters was convicted in 2009 of 20 charges, including money laundering and conspiracy.

MADISON (AP) – A federal judge has ordered state officials to post links to decisions striking down large swaths of Wisconsin’s campaign finance laws on its website.

A federal appeals court in May ruled the state Government Accountability Board had overstepped its bounds in banning spending by corporations, limiting corporate contributions to political committees and establishing burdensome rules for groups that mentioned candidates’ names in ads. The court ordered U.S. District Judge Charles N. Clevert in Milwaukee to issue a permanent injunction blocking the laws.

Clevert issued the injunction Friday. It includes language ordering the GAB to conspicuously post links to the court decisions and keep them active for four years.

A GAB spokesman referred questions to the state Justice Department. A DOJ spokeswoman didn’t immediately return an email message.

GREEN BAY – Salon Aura helped Janice update her look, and kept it very low maintenance.

See how Janice’s Monday Morning Makeover turned out by clicking on the video.

CHICAGO (AP) – Many packaged meals and snacks for toddlers contain worrisome amounts of salt and sugar, potentially creating an early taste for foods that may contribute to obesity and other health risks, according to a new government study.

About seven in 10 toddler dinners studied contained too much salt, and most cereal bars, breakfast pastries and snacks for infants and toddlers contained extra sugars, according to the study by researchers at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They advise parents to read food labels carefully and select healthier choices.

The researchers analyzed package information and labels for more than 1,000 foods marketed for infants and toddlers. Results appear in the journal Pediatrics on Monday.

The study notes that almost one in four U.S. children ages 2 to 5 are overweight or obese – and that almost 80 percent of kids ages 1 to 3 exceed the recommended maximum level of daily salt, which is 1,500 milligrams. Excess sugar and salt can contribute to obesity and elevated blood pressure even in childhood, but also later on.

“We also know that about one in nine children have blood pressure above the normal range for their age, and that sodium, excess sodium, is related to increased blood pressure,” said the CDC’s Mary Cogswell, the study’s lead author. “Blood pressure tracks from when children are young up through adolescence into when they’re adults. Eating foods which are high in sodium can set a child up for high blood pressure and later on for cardiovascular disease.”

The researchers collected data on foods available in 2012. They didn’t list brand names, but foods studied included popular brands of baby food, toddler dinners including packaged macaroni and cheese, mini hot dogs, rice cakes, crackers, dried fruit snacks and yogurt treats.

The Grocery Manufacturers of America, a trade group whose members include makers of foods for infants and toddlers, issued a statement saying the study “does not accurately reflect the wide range of healthy choices available in today’s marketplace … because it is based on 2012 data that does not reflect new products with reduced sodium levels.”

The study “could needlessly alarm and confuse busy parents as they strive to develop suitable meal options that their children will enjoy,” the group said.

The researchers said theirs is the most recent, comprehensive data on commercial foods for young children. Cogswell acknowledged there have been some improvements in the marketplace and said the findings aren’t all negative.

“The good news is that the majority of infant foods were low in sodium,” she said. It was surprising, she said, that “seven out of 10 toddler foods were high in the amount of sodium per serving and that a substantial proportion of toddler meals and the majority of other toddler foods and infant’s and toddler’s snacks contained an added sugar.”

Foods for toddlers should contain no more than about 210 milligrams of salt or sodium per serving, under Institute of Medicine recommendations, but the average for toddler meals studied was 361 milligrams – almost 1.5 times higher than that limit. Sodium amounts per serving ranged from 100 milligrams to more than 900 milligrams.

High sugar content was defined as more than 35 percent of calories per portion coming from sugar, based on Institute of Medicine guidelines for foods served in schools. Many foods in the study exceeded that. On average, sugar contributed 47 percent of calories for infant mixed grains and fruit; 66 percent of calories in dried fruit snacks, and more than 35 percent of calories in dairy-based desserts.

Also, about one in three toddler dinners and most toddler cereal bars and dried fruit-based snacks contained at least one added sugar.

Added sugars, including high fructose corn syrup, dextrose and glucose, raised concerns because they boost calorie totals without health benefits.

“It’s just additional calories that aren’t needed,” Cogswell said.

Kathleen Burnett of Chicago said she tries to buy healthy foods for her three young daughters and recently switched brands when she found out her favorite kids’ yogurt was full of sugar.

“When you’re in the grocery store and things seem quick and simple, it’s very tempting to take those things, and we certainly have,” Burnett said. “We just try to use moderation in those prepackaged foods.”