When choosing a school lunchbox snack, compare the sugars and fibre per slice, the ingredients and the allergens in the exact breakfast cake you plan to pack. Wholemeal doesn’t automatically mean less sugar: a variety with no added sugars may have a different recipe from standard wholemeal breakfast cake. Also check that your child likes the taste and that the portion fits in their lunchbox.
If you sometimes pack breakfast cake as a school snack, compare the sugars and fibre per slice rather than relying on what it says on the front of the pack. Peijnenburg’s product information shows that these values vary between varieties.
If your child prefers a familiar flavour, it’s worth considering whether they’ll actually eat a different recipe. Also compare the ingredients in the variety you choose: a familiar taste doesn’t tell you how much sugar each portion contains.
If you need to avoid gluten or other allergens, the current packaging for the specific variety is what matters. Also ask the school what rules apply to bringing in and sharing food.
Start with any allergens and school rules. Then compare the nutritional information per slice with what your child will eat and what’s easy to pack.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who should pay particular attention? |
|---|---|---|
| Wholemeal, fibre and sugars | Compare sugars and fibre in equal-sized portions, and check which types of flour are used. | When I pack breakfast cake, I want to know what one slice contains, not just what the front of the pack says. Around 36% of consumers give this nutritional profile top priority. |
| A taste that suits a fussy eater | Check the recipe and portion size of the variety your child wants to try. | My child needs to want to eat the breakfast cake; a different recipe may also mean a different taste. For around 29% of consumers, whether their child likes it comes first. |
| Allergens and school rules | Read the current ingredients and allergen information, and ask about the school’s rules. | If gluten or other allergens are a concern, I want to know before packing whether this variety meets the rules in place. This is the main concern for around 21% of consumers. |
| Easy to pack | Check whether the breakfast cake is sliced or individually wrapped, and how many portions are in the pack. | On busy mornings, I want to pack a suitable portion without having to slice it myself. Around 14% of consumers put convenience first. |
Peijnenburg lists 39 g of sugars per 100 g for its standard sliced wholemeal breakfast cake, compared with 4.9 g per 100 g for the wholemeal variety without added sugars that was checked. These are different recipes.
Compare the nutritional values per 100 g and per slice before choosing a variety.
According to its product information, the Peijnenburg variety checked with this claim contains xylitol and chicory root fibre. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre says that consuming large amounts of polyols can cause digestive problems.
Read the ingredients list too. If you want to find out whether your child likes the taste, it’s best to try the variety at home first.
The standard Peijnenburg wholemeal variety checked lists rye and wheat. A brand name or packaging you’ve looked at before won’t tell you which allergens are in the variety you’ve chosen.
Check the current label and ask the school about its rules for bringing in and sharing food.
Sliced or individually wrapped breakfast cake is easy to take along, but ingredients and nutritional values vary between varieties.
Check the ingredients first, then choose the portion format that works for your lunchbox.
Peijnenburg offers standard, wholemeal and sliced breakfast cake, as well as varieties labelled ‘no added sugars’.
ALDI lists a sliced wholemeal breakfast cake and a separate Zero variety from Koek & Bakker.
Jumbo offers several own-brand breakfast cakes, including sliced and wholemeal varieties.
These two breakfast cake products offer different ways to pack a portion for school: individually wrapped bars or sliced wholemeal breakfast cake. If you’re choosing based on sugar content or allergens, always check the label on the specific pack.
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The five individually wrapped bars are handy if you want to pack portions separately.
The ingredients information lists rye and gluten-containing cereals, and says that the product may contain nuts and milk. Don’t rely on the product name to tell you the sugar content: check the current pack for sugars per 100 g and per bar.
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The sliced format is practical if you want to choose the number of slices to pack in your child’s lunchbox.
The ingredients list includes 43% wholemeal rye flour. The product information is inconsistent about allergens: it lists rye flour, but also says that the product contains none of the 14 major allergens. If allergens are a concern, check the current label before packing this variety; you can also use it to compare sugars per portion.
No. Peijnenburg lists 39 g of sugars per 100 g for its sliced wholemeal breakfast cake, and 11 g per 28 g slice. Compare the nutrition table for the specific variety, especially if the slices aren’t all the same weight.
No. For the wholemeal variety without added sugars that it checked, Peijnenburg lists 4.9 g of sugars per 100 g and 1.4 g per 28 g slice. ‘No added sugars’ doesn’t mean the product contains no sugars.
Don’t assume that standard breakfast cake is gluten-free. The Peijnenburg wholemeal variety checked lists rye and wheat. Check the current ingredients and allergen information for the exact variety you plan to pack, and bear the school’s rules in mind.
No, don’t assume that it does. According to NBC, the use of iodine-containing baker’s salt isn’t a legal requirement; the agreement published in the Government Gazette in 2008 covers its use in bread and bread substitutes. If iodine is relevant to your choice, check the breakfast cake’s ingredients list.
