If you’re catering for a guest with coeliac disease, choose biscuits whose current packaging clearly says ‘gluten-free’ or displays a suitable gluten-free certification mark. Check the ingredients and other allergens too. At a mixed buffet, serve the gluten-free biscuits separately with their own clean serving utensil, so crumbs and shared utensils don’t make them unsuitable after all.
For this guest, a clear gluten-free label on the packaging is essential, followed by a serving area free from shared utensils and crumbs from ordinary biscuits. The Dutch Coeliac Association stresses the importance of reading labels and preventing cross-contamination.
If you’re serving both ordinary and gluten-free biscuits, you’ll need to plan how to present them too: a separate plate, a clean serving utensil of their own and a clear label can help prevent guests mixing them up or sharing utensils. This is in line with the Dutch Coeliac Association’s festive-season advice.
A mix of options, such as oat biscuits, chocolate chip biscuits and digestive biscuits, gives guests a choice. Compare the contents, ingredients and allergens on each pack: product information from Albert Heijn and Jumbo shows that these vary between products.
Start by checking the gluten-free label on the current packaging. Then decide how you’ll serve the biscuits separately, and which flavours, allergens and pack sizes will suit your guests.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Gluten-free labelling | Look for ‘gluten-free’ or a suitable gluten-free certification mark on the current packaging, and read any cross-contamination warnings. | When I’m buying biscuits for a guest with coeliac disease, I don’t want to rely on a quick glance at the ingredients list. This clarity is the top priority for around 36% of consumers. |
| Serving separately | Use a separate plate or pack and a clean serving utensil of its own, away from crumbs from ordinary biscuits. | At a mixed buffet, I want to make sure guests don’t use the same utensil for ordinary and gluten-free biscuits. This is the main concern for around 29% of consumers. |
| Variety and other allergens | Compare the types of biscuits and check the ingredients and allergens for each product, such as nuts, soya or egg. | If guests need to avoid something else as well as gluten, I want to be able to choose suitably labelled biscuits. This consideration takes priority for around 21% of consumers. |
| Pack size and availability | Compare the pack size or number of biscuits, and check what’s currently available before planning the buffet. | When I’m catering for a larger group, I want to buy enough biscuits without relying solely on small packs. Around 14% of consumers give this planning the highest priority. |
A biscuit without an obvious wheat ingredient isn’t necessarily confirmed as gluten-free. Cross-contamination can also be a concern, as the Dutch Coeliac Association explains.
For a guest with coeliac disease, choose a pack with a clear gluten-free label or a suitable certification mark, and check any warnings too.
The Dutch Coeliac Association explains that crumbs and shared utensils can cause cross-contamination, even if you’ve chosen the gluten-free biscuits carefully.
Put them out separately with their own clean serving utensil and a clear label. A separate plate for the guest with coeliac disease helps limit contact with the rest of the buffet.
Jumbo lists wheat flour as an ingredient in Lotus Biscoff Speculoos 250 g. The product checked is therefore not a gluten-free option.
Check the current packaging of any alternative spiced biscuits, and serve them separately from ordinary biscuits.
Which gluten-free biscuits are available can change. You’ll also need to check the ingredients and allergen information on the packaging when you buy them.
Check what’s available before the buffet and read the label on the exact product you’re buying.
Albert Heijn offers several types of gluten-free biscuits in this range. It’s one option if you want to compare products for the same buffet.
Schär offers biscuits such as Choco Chip Cookies and Digestive Landtaler. Jumbo describes the products checked as gluten-free.
Heerlijck Banket’s Kokoskransen offer another type of biscuit if you’d like to include coconut biscuits on the buffet.
Ordinary Lotus Biscoff Speculoos can be served alongside gluten-free biscuits at a mixed buffet, but it isn’t suitable for a guest with coeliac disease.
Lidl is one shop where you can check which gluten-free products are currently available.
According to the Dutch Coeliac Association, ‘gluten-free’ means less than 20 mg of gluten per kilo of product. For a guest with coeliac disease, check the label on the current packaging rather than relying on the ingredients list alone.
Take the warning into account when choosing a product for a guest with coeliac disease. The Dutch Coeliac Association explains that cross-contamination can introduce gluten into a product that isn’t meant to contain it. If you’re unsure, ask your guest which product is suitable for them.
Set the gluten-free biscuits apart and give them their own clean serving utensil. The Dutch Coeliac Association also advises setting aside food for someone with coeliac disease before sharing dishes when entertaining.
Not the Lotus Biscoff Speculoos 250 g product checked: Jumbo lists wheat flour as an ingredient. For a guest with coeliac disease, choose a separate biscuit that you’ve checked and whose current packaging carries a gluten-free label.
Not necessarily: ‘gluten-free’ says nothing about other ingredients or allergens. The AH oat biscuits checked contain hazelnut, while the Schär products checked contain soya according to Jumbo. So check the allergen information on the exact pack you plan to serve.
