If someone with coeliac disease is coming, choose toast or crackers whose current packaging explicitly says ‘gluten-free’, and keep the snacks separate from regular toast while preparing and serving them. Then choose a toast shaped like bread or a cracker that suits your toppings. If anyone has other allergies, check the full ingredients list and allergen information too.
You want to serve a gluten-free option without it coming into contact with regular toast, crumbs or shared serving utensils. According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, even a stray breadcrumb can cause symptoms for someone with coeliac disease.
You’re looking for a base for dips, spreads or toppings, and want to decide whether bread-shaped toast, seasoned toasts or flat crackers will work best for your spread. Also consider how easy your chosen product is to serve with your toppings.
As well as gluten, you may need to consider egg, soya, milk, nuts or sesame. A gluten-free label says nothing about these other ingredients, so check the current packaging for each guest.
First, find out what gluten-free precautions your guests need. Then compare the shape with your planned toppings and check for any other allergens.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who is this most important for? |
|---|---|---|
| Serving gluten-free food | Check the gluten-free statement on the packaging. If you’re serving someone with coeliac disease, also keep knives, serving dishes and toppings separate from regular toast. | If I’m serving someone with coeliac disease, I want to stop a suitable toast from coming into contact with crumbs. This precaution would be the main priority for around 42% of consumers. |
| Shape and toppings | Compare bread-shaped toast, seasoned toasts and crackers with the toppings you plan to serve. If the toppings are heavy or moist, check whether the base stays intact. | When serving generously topped snacks, I want to know whether the shape I choose will be easy to serve. Around 33% of consumers are expected to prioritise how well the base goes with the toppings. |
| Other allergens | Read the ingredients list and allergen warnings on the packaging you buy, even if the product is gluten-free. | If a guest also needs to avoid egg or soya, a gluten-free label alone isn’t enough. These additional requirements would be the main concern for around 25% of consumers. |
ALDI Netherlands’ regular toast range includes wheat toast and Melba toast, among other products. The word ‘toast’ on its own doesn’t mean a product is suitable for someone with coeliac disease.
For that guest, choose a product whose current packaging explicitly says it is gluten-free.
Gluten-free toast can come into contact with crumbs containing gluten during preparation or serving. According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, even a small amount of gluten can cause symptoms for someone with coeliac disease.
Prepare the gluten-free snacks with clean, separate knives and serving dishes, and keep dips and toppings separate too.
Ingredients vary from product to product: Jumbo’s Italian toasts contain egg and gluten-free oat flour, while Albert Heijn lists soya in Laurieri Scrocchi.
Ask which ingredients your guests need to avoid, then check the ingredients and allergen warnings on each pack.
A description can help you search, but the information on the packaging you buy is what matters for the product you serve.
Check the packaging again before sharing information about ingredients or allergens with your guests.
These examples show a range of product types. Always check the gluten-free statement and any other allergens for each individual product, not just the brand.
Schär describes Zwieback as small, bread-shaped gluten-free toasts for snacks and other occasions; Snackers are small savoury crackers.
Jumbo describes the 100 g Toastjes Italiaans Gekruid as toasts with an Italian herb blend.
Albert Heijn describes Scrocchi sea salt as gluten-free savoury crackers, rather than bread-shaped toast.
AH Glutenvrij white rolls are a larger bread option for your menu, rather than small toasts.
ALDI Netherlands’ regular toast range includes wheat toast and Melba toast, among other products.
This rice toast could be a crisp base for a drinks party spread. If you’re serving someone with coeliac disease, your choice should depend on the gluten-free statement on the current packaging, as well as keeping preparation separate.
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Rice toast to consider as a crisp base for dips or small toppings. If you’re serving someone with coeliac disease, check the gluten-free statement on the packaging. If anyone has a soya or sesame allergy, check the latest allergen information too.
Pack weight: 65 g. If you’re using heavier toppings, check whether the toast stays intact when served.
Under Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 828/2014, food may be labelled ‘gluten-free’ if it contains no more than 20 mg/kg of gluten when sold to the final consumer. If you’re serving someone with coeliac disease, check the statement on the packaging of the product you buy.
Yes. A gluten-free statement says nothing about ingredients such as egg, soya, nuts or sesame. If a guest needs to avoid other ingredients too, read the full ingredients list and allergen warnings for the specific product.
Prepare the gluten-free snacks separately and use clean, separate knives, serving dishes and spoons for toppings and dips. This helps limit contact with crumbs from regular toast, which the Netherlands Nutrition Centre says is particularly important for people with coeliac disease.
You can’t tell from the ‘gluten-free’ label. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre explains that iodised baker’s salt is used in bread. For a specific toast product, check the ingredients list to see whether iodised salt is included.
