Choose a half loaf if you only need a little bread for your family dinner and want to keep leftovers to a minimum. If you eat bread at other times too and have room in your freezer, the Dutch Nutrition Centre advises freezing a whole loaf in portions as soon as you buy it. Don’t choose bread on size alone: if you have allergies, check the ingredients and allergens in the loaf you’re buying.
If bread is only served with one dinner or at a couple of meals, a half loaf may suit your needs better than a whole one. If you do have slices left over, the Dutch Nutrition Centre advises freezing bread in portions as soon as you buy it.
If you want to serve wholemeal bread with dinner without buying a whole loaf, there are half-loaf options to compare. The Dutch Nutrition Centre highlights wholemeal bread for its fibre, vitamins and minerals. When choosing, check the product description and, if you’re comparing products, the nutritional information per 100 g.
If someone at the table needs to avoid certain ingredients, checking those ingredients comes before choosing a half or whole loaf. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority explains the requirements for declaring allergens on labels. For every packaged loaf, read the latest ingredients list; for unpackaged bread, ask for allergen information.
Work out how much bread you’ll need for dinner and the meals that follow. Then choose a type of bread to suit everyone at the table, and decide what you’ll do with any leftovers.
| What to consider | What to look for | Who is this most important for? |
|---|---|---|
| Portions and leftovers | Count the slices you expect to use and compare pack weights. Think about whether you can freeze any leftover bread straight away. | If bread is only served with one meal, I don’t want to be left with lots of leftovers. For around 38% of consumers, minimising leftovers is the top priority. |
| Wholemeal and fibre | Check that it’s labelled ‘wholemeal’ and, if you like, compare the fibre per 100 g; the colour of the bread isn’t enough to tell you. | When bread is part of our meals more often, I mainly want to know what type of bread I’m buying. Around 31% of consumers prioritise wholemeal bread and fibre. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the latest ingredients list and allergen information. If you’re choosing based on iodine information, check specifically for baker’s salt or iodised salt. | If a guest needs to avoid an ingredient, I need to be able to check what’s in the bread before buying it. This is the top priority for around 16% of consumers. |
| Flavour and how it’s served | Choose bread to suit how you plan to use it, for example as a side or for toasties, then check the size and ingredients. | If the bread is mainly being served alongside dinner, I want to choose something that works with the way we’re serving it. For around 15% of consumers, how the bread is served comes first. |
A dark colour or a name that mentions grains doesn’t prove that bread is wholemeal. The Dutch Nutrition Centre distinguishes wholemeal bread from other types according to the grain used.
Check the product description for ‘wholemeal’. If it matters to your choice, compare the fibre per 100 g.
You can still have slices left over from a half loaf if you only serve it at one meal.
Choose a loaf size to suit how many times you’ll eat it. The Dutch Nutrition Centre advises freezing bread in portions as soon as you buy it if you want to keep it.
A label such as ‘reduced carbohydrate’ doesn’t mean a loaf is suitable for someone with an allergy. For example, the Jumbo reduced-carbohydrate wholemeal half loaf reviewed contains wheat, soya and egg.
Check the latest ingredients and allergen information for every product, especially if you’re serving it to guests. For unpackaged bread, ask for allergen information before buying.
Albert Heijn lists iodised salt in the AH Bakkersbrood swirl wholemeal half loaf reviewed. You can’t assume another loaf contains it too.
If iodised salt is important to your choice, check the ingredients list for that specific loaf or ask about it when buying unpackaged bread.
The examples below show half loaves you can compare at different shops. Always check the latest packaging or product information when you buy.
Albert Heijn lists a 350 g AH Bakkersbrood swirl wholemeal half loaf.
Jumbo lists products including Fijn Volkoren - Half and a reduced-carbohydrate wholemeal half loaf.
Lidl lists a 400 g Halfje extra wholemeal loaf.
ALDI lists an Extra vezelrijk wholemeal half loaf, described as a dark bread with seeds and grains.
PLUS lists a 400 g Boeren wholemeal half loaf.
Dirk lists the Bakker van der Akker Boeren wholemeal half loaf, as well as other half-loaf options.
No, it depends on how much bread you use and what you do with any leftovers. If you eat bread after dinner too and have room in your freezer, you can buy a whole loaf and freeze it in portions as soon as you buy it, following the Dutch Nutrition Centre’s advice.
No, you can’t tell from the size. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority explains the conditions under which iodine compounds may be present in bread through baker’s salt. Check the ingredients list for baker’s salt or iodised salt on the loaf you’re buying. The Albert Heijn half loaf mentioned above lists iodised salt.
For packaged bread, read the latest ingredients list and check which allergens are highlighted. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority explains the legal labelling requirements for 14 allergens. For unpackaged bread, ask for allergen information before buying.
Not necessarily: a different carbohydrate profile doesn’t tell you anything about allergens. The Jumbo reduced-carbohydrate wholemeal half loaf reviewed contains wheat, soya and egg, among other ingredients. So check the latest ingredients list for the specific loaf before buying it for guests.
