If wholemeal and fibre are your priorities, look for a wholemeal raisin or currant bun and check the nutritional information on the pack. If your teenager prefers a familiar white currant bun, you could alternate it with a separate wholemeal lunch option; don’t assume a white-and-wholemeal mix is wholemeal without checking the ingredients. When packing lunch, also check the allergens for the bun you’ve chosen and any rules set by the school.
If a familiar currant bun gets eaten but a wholemeal one is left behind, alternating it with another wholemeal lunch option could be a good first step. The colour or the term ‘multigrain’ doesn’t, on its own, tell you whether a bun is wholemeal.
For them, the exact product name, ingredients and fibre content per 100 g matter more than how the bun looks. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre recommends replacing white bread with wholemeal or brown bread as often as possible.
If a pupil has a food allergy, the information for the exact product they’ve bought matters. You should also check any rules set by the school before putting the bun in their lunchbox.
First decide whether wholemeal ingredients, your teenager’s preferences or an allergy will guide your choice. Then compare the packaging of the specific bun.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who is it most relevant to? |
|---|---|---|
| Wholemeal ingredients and fibre | Look for the word ‘wholemeal’ and, if both products list it, compare the fibre content per 100 g. | I want to pack a wholemeal bread option more often, rather than judging by the brown colour alone. For around 40% of consumers, wholemeal and fibre are the top priorities. |
| Taste and size | Consider whether a regular or mini bun is a better fit for what your teenager wants to eat; try a new variety in a small portion first. | An unfamiliar texture might mean lunch gets left uneaten, so I’d rather start with something familiar. Around 30% of consumers put whether it will be eaten first. |
| Allergens and school rules | Check the current packaging for both the allergens present and any ‘may contain’ warnings; ask about the school’s rules. | Before packing lunch, I need to know whether this particular bun is suitable for the pupil’s allergy and the school’s rules. This is the main concern for around 20% of consumers. |
| Pack size and availability | Check how many buns are in the pack and where the variety you’ve chosen is available; Lidl lists its mini wholemeal raisin buns as an in-store product. | If I pack school lunches regularly, I want to be able to buy the right amount without ending up with an unused pack. This matters most to around 10% of consumers. |
You can’t compare a white bun with a wholemeal one by name alone. Jumbo lists 2.8 g of fibre per 100 g for its white raisin and currant buns, while PLUS lists 3.3 g per 100 g for its white currant buns. For a comparison with a wholemeal variety, check its current nutritional information too; the product name alone won’t tell you how much fibre it contains.
According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, ‘multigrain’ means that at least three types of grain are used. It doesn’t automatically mean the product is wholemeal.
Look for the word ‘wholemeal’ on the pack and check the ingredients and nutritional information when comparing different buns.
Jumbo and PLUS list ingredients containing gluten and milk among the ingredients in their white currant buns. A different variety may have different allergens.
Before packing lunch, check the current allergen information on the pack you’ve bought, including any warnings about possible traces.
Lidl lists 360 g packs of mini wholemeal raisin buns, but the product name doesn’t give the fibre content per 100 g. So you can’t yet make a nutritional comparison with the white varieties from Jumbo and PLUS.
Compare the nutritional tables on the exact packs and check the ingredients and allergens too.
Albert Heijn has an online category for currant buns and muesli buns, with a range of different products.
Jumbo lists a classic white raisin and currant bun in a pack of six.
Lidl lists both currant buns and mini wholemeal raisin buns.
ALDI lists raisin and currant buns in packs of six, as well as separate wholemeal rolls.
PLUS lists white wheat, raisin and currant buns in packs of six, as well as separate wholemeal rolls.
Bolletje makes wholemeal bread alternatives, including wholemeal crispbread, which you could pack instead of a currant bun.
These products aren’t currant buns. They’re options to consider as separate lunch items if you’d like to alternate a familiar currant bun with something different. Check that your teenager likes the texture, and read the packaging before packing it for lunch.
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A crunchy alternative for a pupil who’d like something else with their currant bun. This is crispbread, not a soft currant bun; check the current packaging for ingredients, nutritional information and allergens.
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A possible separate bread option if you’d like to alternate currant buns with a different type of bread. The product title mentions a bun, while the description refers to sliced rye bread; check the product’s format and allergens on the current packaging before choosing it for a school lunch.
No. Jumbo and PLUS describe the classic raisin and currant buns mentioned here as white wheat buns. For a different variety, look for the word ‘wholemeal’ and check the ingredients on the exact pack; ‘multigrain’ doesn’t automatically mean wholemeal.
Check the current allergen information for the exact bun you’re packing for school. The classic Jumbo and PLUS varieties mentioned here contain ingredients with gluten and milk, among other things; this doesn’t tell you what’s in every other currant bun. You should also ask about any rules set by the school.
Don’t assume this is the case for an individual product. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority explains the conditions under which iodine compounds may be present in bakery products through the use of baker’s salt; this doesn’t mean every currant bun contains baker’s salt. Check the ingredients list on the pack you’ve chosen to find out what it contains.
Start with a small portion and see whether your teenager likes the taste and texture before packing it for lunch more often. You could alternate a familiar currant bun with a separate wholemeal lunch option; follow the storage instructions on the packaging.
