If you’re choosing crispbread for someone with coeliac disease, look for a ‘gluten-free’ label and check the current packaging for other relevant ingredients and allergens too. Take it to the picnic in a sealed, separate pack, and avoid contact with gluten crumbs, shared cutlery and communal dips when serving. If you regularly eat crispbread instead of bread, don’t assume it contains iodised salt: check the label and consider your diet as a whole.
You need crispbread labelled ‘gluten-free’, but you also want to avoid gluten crumbs getting onto it during transport or serving. The Dutch Coeliac Association highlights the importance of preventing cross-contamination.
You’re taking both gluten-containing and gluten-free food. Separate packaging, a dedicated place on the picnic blanket and separate serving utensils can help keep the gluten-free food apart.
Alongside the gluten-free label, you want to compare the grains used, fibre, salt and whether iodised salt is mentioned. These details vary from product to product.
Start with the gluten-free label on the packaging. Then decide how you’ll keep the food separate at the picnic and which other label details matter to you.
| What to look for | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Suitable for coeliac disease | Look for ‘gluten-free’ on the packaging and read the current ingredients and allergen information. Don’t rely on the word ‘cracker’ or ‘crispbread’ alone. | If I have coeliac disease, I don’t want to have to guess whether a rye cracker is suitable. For around 36% of these consumers, gluten-free suitability comes first. |
| Preventing cross-contamination | Take the product along sealed and separate; use clean, separate utensils and individual dip pots when serving. | If I’m also serving food that contains gluten, I want to stop crumbs or shared dips coming into contact with the gluten-free crispbread. Preventing cross-contamination is the top priority for around 29% of consumers. |
| Ingredients and nutritional information | Compare the grains used, fibre and salt per 100 g and per serving. Check for other allergens and, if relevant to your diet, look for a mention of iodised salt. | If I regularly use crispbread instead of bread, I want to know what’s in the variety I choose without assuming it has the same nutritional value. Around 21% of consumers prioritise these product details. |
| Buying and transport | Check the packaging when you buy or receive the product, and choose a way to transport it that keeps it sealed and separate. | If I’m organising the picnic at short notice, I want to be able to check that a suitable pack is available and take it with me without having to improvise. Around 14% of consumers prioritise this practical consideration. |
Rye contains gluten. Ryvita also says that all its products contain gluten, so standard Ryvita crispbread isn’t suitable for someone with coeliac disease.
Don’t use the colour, shape or a wholegrain label as a substitute for the ‘gluten-free’ label. Read the packaging of the variety you’re actually buying.
The Dutch Coeliac Association says that even a crumb can be harmful to someone with coeliac disease. A shared knife, communal dip or place beside bread containing gluten makes it important to keep food separate during the picnic.
Only open the gluten-free pack when you need it. Keep the food in its own place and use clean, separate serving utensils and individual dips.
The Netherlands Nutrition Centre describes bread made with iodised baker’s salt as an important source of iodine, but also notes that using baker’s salt isn’t compulsory. A mention on one crispbread product doesn’t automatically apply to another.
Check whether your chosen product lists iodised salt if you regularly replace bread with crispbread. Consider this choice as part of your diet as a whole, not just your picnic serving.
A shop page can’t show you which pack you’ll end up buying. Albert Heijn warns that product information, including ingredients and allergens, can change.
Check in good time which variety is available and read the packaging before you set off. Take a second checked option if you need to be sure you’ll have a suitable product for the picnic.
Wasa has specific crispbread varieties labelled gluten-free, including Gluten- & Lactose Vrij Classic. The brand name alone tells you nothing about whether another variety is suitable.
Schär has several gluten-free crispbread products. Compare the specific variety if the type of grain or nutritional information affects your choice.
Ryvita is included here mainly as an example of crispbread you shouldn’t judge by its shape or how familiar the brand is.
Albert Heijn provides product information for the Schär varieties mentioned above, among others. Use it to make targeted comparisons, not as a substitute for checking the pack.
Jumbo lists Wasa varieties labelled gluten-free alongside other Wasa products. Choose by variety name and packaging, not by the brand name alone.
No. Standard Ryvita crispbread isn’t a gluten-free choice: Ryvita says that all its products contain gluten. Choose a product labelled ‘gluten-free’ on the current packaging for someone with coeliac disease.
No. Its appearance and product category don’t tell you whether it’s gluten-free. Look for the ‘gluten-free’ label and read the ingredients and allergen information on the pack you’ve chosen. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority explains how gluten-containing grains are listed in the ingredients.
Keep it sealed and separate until you’re ready to serve it, and give it its own place and clean serving utensils. Also make sure food containing gluten isn’t dipped into the dips served with the gluten-free food. The Dutch Coeliac Association stresses that cross-contamination from crumbs matters.
No. Check the packaging for each product. Albert Heijn’s product information lists iodised salt for Schär Hafer crispbread, but that doesn’t tell you anything about other varieties. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre points out that even the use of baker’s salt in bread isn’t compulsory.
