Choose plain rice cakes if you want to offer a neutral snack base for a mixed group; choose digestives if you’re looking for a sweet biscuit to serve with coffee or tea. Wheat-based digestives are not a substitute for rice cakes labelled gluten-free. Whichever you choose, check the label on the exact product and make allergen information available when serving the snacks unpackaged.
You want to be able to tell guests clearly which allergens a product contains. This needs extra attention when you put rice cakes or biscuits out on a buffet without their packaging. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority requires consumers to be given information about allergens present in unpackaged foods.
You want to offer something guests can enjoy on its own or with a choice of toppings, without making sweet biscuits the default. Plain rice cakes suit this way of serving; a digestive is a different type of product.
You’d rather offer a sweet biscuit with coffee. In that case, a digestive could suit the occasion, as long as you take the ingredients and allergens in your chosen variety into account.
First decide whether you want a plain rice cake or a sweet biscuit to be the standard option on the table. Then compare the ingredients, allergens and serving information for each exact variety. A rice cracker or multigrain rice cake isn’t automatically the same as a plain rice cake.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Allergens and information for guests | Read the allergen information for the exact variety, including any possible traces. If serving unpackaged, make information about allergens present available. | When I’m putting out snacks for guests with different dietary requirements, I want to know in advance which products need to be labelled separately. Around 45% of consumers put this allergen information first. |
| A neutral snack base | Compare the ingredients and serving size. If you’re choosing between plain and multigrain varieties, also check the nutritional information per 100 g. | For a break with a choice of toppings, I don’t want sweet biscuits to be the only option. A neutral base matters most to around 33% of consumers. |
| A biscuit to serve with coffee or tea | Make a conscious choice between a rice cake and a digestive. For biscuits, check for wheat and any other allergens. | When a coffee break calls for a classic biscuit, I’m happy for it to have a different taste and composition from a rice cake. This type of biscuit is the first choice for around 22% of consumers. |
The digestives described by Albert Heijn and Jumbo contain wheat. The plain rice cakes mentioned are made with wholegrain rice. So they differ not only in product type and taste, but also in the ingredients you need to communicate to guests.
Offer digestives as a separate biscuit option and label your chosen rice cake variety separately.
A gluten-free label doesn’t answer every question about allergens. For example, Jumbo states that its Rijstwafels Naturel may contain traces of sesame and soya.
Check the current packaging for the exact variety and make sure allergen information remains available at the buffet.
When you serve snacks loose, it’s easy for the ingredients and allergen information on the packaging to be out of sight. Storage instructions after opening can also vary from product to product.
Keep the packaging or have the relevant product information ready, and follow the label’s storage instructions for opened products.
Multigrain rice cakes, lentil cakes and flavoured rice cakes don’t have the same ingredients or role as plain rice cakes.
Choose your base option to suit the occasion, and only offer other varieties when they’re clearly labelled.
A plain rice cake from its own range.
Plain and multigrain rice cakes for different tastes.
A sea-salt rice cake from the ALDI range.
A Lidl range of rice cakes in different flavours.
These products offer three different ways to serve snacks: a digestive to go with coffee or tea, a plain rice cracker and a caramel-flavoured rice cake. The rice cracker isn’t necessarily the same as a plain rice cake, so choose each option according to the product type you’re looking for and the information on the label.
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A biscuit option if you’ve decided to serve digestives rather than rice cakes at your coffee break.
Before serving these biscuits unpackaged, check the current packaging for wheat and other allergens. To work out how many you’ll need per guest, check the number of biscuits in the pack too.
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A plain rice cracker for anyone looking to offer a savoury snack alongside biscuits. Don’t treat it as a confirmed plain rice cake.
Before offering this cracker to guests, check the current label to see how sesame and soya are listed, including as possible traces.
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A caramel-flavoured rice cake for a sweeter snack at the break, rather than a neutral base option.
Check the current packaging for soya and any warnings about milk and sesame, and keep this information available when serving the cakes unpackaged.
No. Check the gluten-free label on the current packaging for your chosen variety. Albert Heijn labels AH Rijstwafels naturel gluten-free; always check for other allergens and possible traces too.
Make sure guests can get information about allergens present before choosing an unpackaged product. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority requires this information to be provided for unpackaged foods in a way other than on the packaging, so keep details of the exact products available at the buffet.
Only if you’re deliberately choosing a biscuit: a digestive isn’t a rice cake. The digestives described by Albert Heijn and Jumbo contain wheat, while the plain rice cakes mentioned are rice-based. If guests are looking for a gluten-free option, check the label on your chosen rice cake separately.
Follow the storage instructions on each pack and reseal any opened products. Albert Heijn recommends storing its plain rice cakes in a sealed container once opened; McVities Digestive Original should be stored somewhere dry and preferably cool.
Compare the number of individual items or servings on the exact pack with the expected number of guests and the other snacks you’re offering. The pack weight alone won’t tell you how many individual rice cakes or biscuits you can serve.
