If you want thick slices with generous toppings for a work-from-home lunch, choose bread you can slice yourself, or check the thickness of pre-sliced bread before you buy. Also compare the wholemeal content, fibre, salt and allergens of the exact product. Words such as ‘multigrain’, ‘hearty’ and ‘whole’ don’t tell you how thick a slice is.
If you make sandwiches with toppings such as hummus, egg, cheese or vegetables during a short break, you’ll want to know in advance whether the slices are the thickness you’re after. Ask the shop whether the bread is pre-sliced and what thickness to expect.
For this lunch, the ingredients of the specific loaf matter more than the word ‘multigrain’ alone. The ingredients list and fibre per 100 g can help you compare products.
If you need to avoid certain ingredients, check the allergen information on the current packaging. ‘Multigrain’ doesn’t tell you whether a loaf contains ingredients such as wheat, sesame or soya; a gluten-free option should be clearly labelled as such.
Start by deciding whether you want to slice the bread yourself or buy a pre-sliced loaf. Then check the ingredients and label of the bread you’re actually planning to buy.
| What to look for | What to check when buying | Who is this important for? |
|---|---|---|
| Slice thickness | Ask whether the bread is pre-sliced and what slice thickness or slicing options the shop offers. ‘Whole’ can also describe a loaf that has been sliced. | For a lunch with generous toppings, I want to be able to choose the thickness of my bread. Around 33% of consumers prioritise slice thickness. |
| Wholemeal flour and fibre | Read the product description and ingredients list; compare the fibre per 100 g of the specific loaves. | If the ingredients matter most for my lunch, I’d rather look at wholemeal flour and fibre than the word ‘multigrain’. Around 27% of consumers prioritise these features. |
| Salt and iodine | Compare salt per 100 g and check whether the label mentions baker’s salt or iodised salt. Factor in your toppings, too. | For a topped sandwich, I want to know what’s in both the bread and the toppings. Around 20% of consumers look at salt and iodine first when choosing. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the current ingredients and allergen information, including any ‘may contain’ statements. | If I need to avoid certain ingredients, I need a label that lets me check what’s in the bread. Around 20% of consumers put ingredients and allergens first. |
These words don’t tell you how many millimetres thick a slice is. A whole loaf may already be sliced, as the name ‘whole sliced’ for an Albert Heijn loaf shows.
Ask about the slice thickness or number of slices, and check whether you can slice the bread yourself if that matters for your lunch.
The word ‘multigrain’ doesn’t tell you how much wholemeal flour or fibre a particular loaf contains.
Look for the wholemeal description and compare the ingredients and fibre per 100 g of the products you’re considering.
For a topped sandwich, the salt in ingredients such as cheese, spreads or sauces also counts towards your lunch.
Compare the salt content of bread per 100 g and check the nutritional information for the toppings you plan to use.
Multigrain refers to the mix of grains, not to being gluten-free. The regular breads mentioned here contain grains that contain gluten.
If you need a gluten-free product, choose bread that is clearly labelled gluten-free and check the current allergen information.
These examples show the product information you can compare across different types of bread; the brand name doesn’t confirm the slice thickness.
Albert Heijn stocks products including AH Liefde & Passie Meergranen and AH OerDesem donker meergranen heel gesneden.
Jumbo stocks products including Jumbo Stevig Meergranen.
ALDI stocks products including a luxury multigrain hearth loaf and a farmhouse wholemeal multigrain loaf.
Lidl offers a multigrain loaf, and provides separate ingredient and allergen information for its oven-fresh bread.
PLUS lists products including Korenlanders Desem Meergranen Boekweit, bake-at-home multigrain baguettes and a gluten-free Schär option.
Dirk offers multigrain bread as half or whole loaves, including products from Bakker van der Akker.
These two pack options of round multigrain bread suit anyone who wants to slice their own bread for a work-from-home lunch and has time to defrost and bake it. Before buying, check that the shape of the loaf and the way it slices work for the toppings you have in mind.
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A good choice if you want to slice your own bread for lunch and can plan ahead for preparation.
The product name lists two loaves of 550 g each. Allow time to defrost, bake and cool the bread before slicing; check that the slices you want will work with your toppings.
If you have any ingredient or allergen requirements, check the current packaging.
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A good choice if you want to prepare one round loaf and then slice your own bread for lunch.
The product name lists 550 g. Allow time to defrost, bake and cool the bread before slicing; check that the slices you want will work with your toppings.
If you have any ingredient or allergen requirements, check the current packaging.
Ask about the slice thickness or number of slices, and check whether the bread is pre-sliced. Words such as ‘hearty’, ‘whole’ and ‘sliced’ don’t tell you how thick the slices are. If you want to slice the bread yourself, check that it really is sold unsliced.
No. Check the product description and ingredients list for the specific loaf. If fibre matters to you, compare the listed amount per 100 g. The Voedingscentrum distinguishes between the term multigrain and the ingredients of wholemeal bread.
Compare the salt content per 100 g and check whether the label lists baker’s salt or iodised salt as an ingredient. The Voedingscentrum describes bread as a source of iodine; check each product to see whether it contains iodised salt. Remember to factor in the salt in your toppings, too.
Don’t assume so: the regular multigrain breads mentioned may contain grains that contain gluten. If you need gluten-free bread, look for an explicit gluten-free label and check the current allergen information. The Schär Mehrkorn mentioned at PLUS is specifically labelled gluten-free.
