If you’re looking for a chocolate biscuit to enjoy with a coffee on the go, compare the sugar per 100 g first, then per biscuit if that information is available. According to the manufacturer, Céréal Chocolate Chip Cookie contains 0 g of sugars per 100 g, while Céréal Choco Delight Puur contains 0.5 g per 100 g. Both contain polyols. A plain coffee biscuit with no added sugars could also go well with coffee, but it isn’t a chocolate biscuit and may contain naturally occurring sugars.
If you want a chocolate biscuit with as little sugar as possible to go with your coffee, check the ‘of which sugars’ line in the nutritional information. The figure per 100 g helps you compare products, while the figure per biscuit shows what you’re having with one coffee break. Also check which sweeteners have been used.
If you want to take a biscuit with you, the weight per biscuit, nutritional values per portion and packaging all matter. A low sugar figure per 100 g doesn’t tell you on its own how much energy one biscuit provides or how convenient the packaging is.
If you want to avoid polyols or need to watch out for certain allergens, read the ingredients and allergen information for the version you’re buying. The products mentioned here and related varieties may contain ingredients such as wheat, milk, soya and hazelnuts; the ingredients vary from product to product.
First decide whether chocolate is a must-have. Then compare the sugars per 100 g, and finally check whether the portion, packaging and ingredients suit your coffee break.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Sugars in a chocolate biscuit | Compare ‘of which sugars’ per 100 g; also check the figure per biscuit if it’s given. | I want to keep the sugar content low but still have a chocolate biscuit with my coffee. For around 42% of consumers, sugar content comes first. |
| A portion for on the go | Check the weight per biscuit, the energy per portion and how the biscuits are packaged. | I want a biscuit that’s easy to take with me, and I want to know what counts as one portion. Around 33% of consumers prioritise a practical portion size. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the ingredients list, allergen information and any warning about polyols on the current packaging. | I want to know which sweeteners and allergens are in this particular variety before I take it with me. For an estimated 25% of consumers, checking this is the most important requirement. |
A biscuit with no added sugars may still contain naturally occurring sugars. Jumbo, for example, says this about Verkade San Francisco Zero. Under the EU regulation on nutrition claims, a solid food can only be labelled ‘sugar-free’ if it contains no more than 0.5 g of sugars per 100 g.
So check the sugar figure in the nutritional information too. Don’t choose based only on the wording on the front of the pack.
A reduction percentage compares a product with a reference product; it doesn’t tell you directly how much sugar the biscuit contains. The reduction percentages listed for Céréal Choco Delight Puur also differ between the information from Céréal and Jumbo.
Compare the current sugar content per 100 g and, where given, per biscuit. Check separately what a reduction claim is comparing it with.
A low sugar figure can go hand in hand with polyols. Céréal lists them in its Chocolate Chip Cookie; on its Dutch product page, Albert Heijn warns that excessive consumption may have a laxative effect.
Read the ingredients and warnings on the packaging, especially if you’re planning to have more than one biscuit or want to avoid polyols.
Verkade San Francisco Zero is a plain biscuit with no added sugars. It may go well with coffee, but it doesn’t have the chocolate you might be looking for in a chocolate biscuit.
Decide whether chocolate is essential before comparing sugar claims. If it is, compare varieties that actually contain chocolate.
Céréal has two chocolate biscuits relevant to this choice: Chocolate Chip Cookie and Choco Delight Puur.
San Francisco Zero is an alternative if you’re mainly after a plain biscuit to have with coffee and chocolate isn’t essential.
Regular chocolate biscuits in Jumbo’s range can be used as a point of comparison when you want to compare different sugar levels.
No. Under the EU regulation on nutrition claims, a solid food can only be labelled ‘sugar-free’ if it contains no more than 0.5 g of sugars per 100 g. A product with no added sugars may still contain naturally occurring sugars; Jumbo states this for Verkade San Francisco Zero.
The Céréal biscuits mentioned here use polyols as well as having a low sugar content. Albert Heijn states that excessive consumption of Céréal Chocolate Chip Cookie may have a laxative effect. Check the ingredients and warning for the variety you’re buying.
Not on that claim alone: ‘less sugar’ is a comparison with a reference product. To find out how much sugar the biscuit contains, check ‘of which sugars’ per 100 g and, if available, per portion. The reduction percentages for Céréal Choco Delight Puur differ between the information from Céréal and Jumbo.
It depends on the exact variety. Product information for the biscuits mentioned here and related varieties lists ingredients such as wheat, milk, soya and, in some varieties, hazelnuts. Read the allergen information on the pack you’re actually buying.
