For a regular snack for a young child or toddler, the Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends foods from the Wheel of Five, such as fruit, vegetables or wholemeal bread, rather than a chocolate biscuit. If you do choose a sweet treat now and then, check what the child will actually get: one biscuit, a bag containing several biscuits or a whole bar. Also check the current label and, if you’re packing something to take along, the rules at the childcare setting, after-school club or school.
You want something convenient for a regular snack time. For young children and toddlers, the Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends foods from the Wheel of Five, such as fruit, vegetables or wholemeal bread. A chocolate biscuit therefore has a different role from their usual snack.
You’re looking for a treat with a clear portion size and want to know how many biscuits are in an inner packet. The nutrition information per biscuit or per whole bar helps you work out what the child will actually get.
You need to check the allergens in the exact variant and find out what rules apply at the childcare setting, after-school club or school. Convenient packaging doesn’t in itself mean the product is suitable to take there.
First decide whether it’s for a regular snack or an occasional treat. For a treat, compare the amount you’ll actually give, then check the label and the venue’s rules before packing it.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| A regular snack | For a regular snack time, look for fruit, vegetables or wholemeal bread, as recommended for young children and toddlers by the Netherlands Nutrition Centre. | If I want to pack something every day, I’m looking for an everyday snack, not a regular biscuit treat. Around 42% of consumers put this daily choice first. |
| A small treat | Read the nutrition information per biscuit or bar and count the biscuits in an inner bag; an individual packet may contain several pieces. | For a sweet treat, I want to decide in advance whether I’m giving one biscuit, several biscuits or a whole bar. For around 33% of consumers, portion size is the main concern. |
| Allergens and venue rules | Read the current label for the exact variant, including any may-contain warnings, and ask about the policy at the venue receiving it. | When I pack something for a childcare setting, after-school club or school, it needs to comply with the allergies and rules there. This is the main concern for around 25% of consumers. |
According to Jumbo’s product listing, Lotus Biscoff Speculoos Chocolate comes in packets of three biscuits. Opening a packet and giving the child all of it is therefore different from giving them one biscuit.
Count the pieces in the inner packet and decide in advance how many biscuits you want to give.
An individual wrapper makes a bar easy to take with you, but doesn’t tell you how much it contains. Jumbo lists its Chocolate Cookie Bar as containing 119 kcal per 24 g bar.
Compare the nutrition information for the whole bar with the amount of biscuit you actually want to give.
Product listings from Albert Heijn and Jumbo, among others, also name allergens such as milk, soya and egg in chocolate biscuits. May-contain warnings can vary between variants.
Read all the allergens and warnings on the current packaging, and ask the childcare setting, after-school club or school what rules apply.
Ingredients and allergy information can change, as Albert Heijn notes in its product information. So the details you compare beforehand may not match the packaging you buy.
Check the label on the exact variant again before giving or packing the biscuit.
Verkade Tops chocolade is an example of small chocolate biscuits where the amount per biscuit matters when choosing.
The chocolate variant of Lotus Biscoff shows why an inner packet isn’t necessarily the same as one biscuit.
AH Koekjes met chocolade is an own-brand example for comparing portion and label information for small biscuits.
Jumbo’s chocolate biscuits and cookie bars make the difference between one biscuit and a whole bar clear.
Biscotto Chocoladekoekjes are an example of biscuits packed in pairs.
These biscuits, wafers and bars are options to compare for an occasional sweet treat, not for a toddler’s regular daily snack. For each product, check the amount per piece or inner packet and read the current label before packing anything to take along.
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For an occasional treat, you can consider one of the nine pieces as a portion on its own.
Don’t assume each piece has its own wrapper; check the packaging if this matters. Also read the current label and ask about the venue’s rules before packing it to take along.
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The 16.5 g pack gives you a defined portion to compare when choosing an occasional treat.
A clearly defined pack size doesn’t tell you the nutrition information. Check the details per pack and read the current label.
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For an occasional biscuit treat, the amount per biscuit matters most, not just the 70 g pack weight.
Check the nutrition information per biscuit and read the current label before choosing or packing a portion.
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With this 47 g pack, the number of sticks you give determines the portion for an occasional sweet treat.
Read the nutrition information for that amount and check the allergens on the current label, especially if you’re packing the sticks to take along.
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For an occasional treat from this 150 g pack, you can compare the amount per biscuit or inner packet.
Check how many biscuits you’ll actually give, read the relevant nutrition information and check the current label before packing them.
For a daily snack, the Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends foods from the Wheel of Five for young children and toddlers, such as fruit, vegetables or wholemeal bread. It’s therefore better to think of a chocolate biscuit as an occasional treat rather than an everyday snack.
Compare the amount the child will actually get. Check how many biscuits are in an inner bag and read the nutrition information per biscuit or per portion served; a bag may contain several pieces.
No, the wrapper doesn’t tell you how much the bar contains. For example, Jumbo lists 119 kcal per 24 g Chocolate Cookie Bar. Check the nutrition information for the whole bar before deciding what portion to give.
Read the current label for the exact variant, including any may-contain warnings. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority explains how allergens must be listed on the labels of prepacked foods. If you’re packing the product to take along, also check the rules at the childcare setting, after-school club or school.
