If you want to offer rusks with chocolate sprinkles alongside oliebollen, buying in bread is a more practical option than making your own sourdough if you want to avoid adding another baking process. Baking your own sourdough only makes sense if you can also manage preparation, food safety and allergen information. If you buy in bread, check the product information and the quantities available from each shop.
If rusks with chocolate sprinkles are an addition to your oliebollen offering, you may want to add bread without setting up your own sourdough process. Even for a simple addition, allergen information must be available for unpackaged sales, according to the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA).
If having your own bread recipe matters and you can make time for a starter, proving and a controlled preparation process, this could be the right option for you. Albert Heijn describes the starter as the basis of sourdough bread. The NVWA’s guidance on a suitable food safety plan is also relevant to safe food preparation.
If you want to give customers clear information about the ingredients and allergens in rusks, chocolate sprinkles and any bread you offer, this is an important consideration. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre points out that wheat, rye and barley contain gluten, among other grains. The word ‘sourdough’ alone does not mean a product is suitable for a gluten-free diet.
When: Choose bought-in bread if it’s just an extra option alongside rusks with chocolate sprinkles and you don’t want to organise your own bread production.
What to consider: You’ll depend on the product information and the quantities available from your chosen shop. Lidl lists its rustic wholemeal sourdough bread as an in-store product and advises contacting the branch about larger bread orders.
When: Choose this option if having your own sourdough recipe is central to your offering and you can plan the preparation outside your stall’s serving hours.
What to consider: A starter and proving times need extra planning. If you prepare and sell food regularly, the NVWA requires you to follow a suitable HACCP food safety plan or an applicable, approved hygiene code.
| Consideration | What to check before buying | Who is this most important for? |
|---|---|---|
| Food safety and allergens | Check the ingredients and allergens for each item, and how you’ll make that information available when selling unpackaged food. Include any extra preparation steps in your food safety procedures. | If I sell rusks, toppings or bread unpackaged, I want to give customers accurate information before they choose. For around 36% of consumers, a manageable process with clear allergen information comes first. |
| Quantities and availability | Ask the branch what quantities of bread you can order or reserve, and when you can collect them. | On a busy sales day, I don’t want to rely on a bread option that I can’t buy in the quantities I need. Reliable, predictable supply is the main concern for around 29% of consumers. |
| Your own sourdough recipe | Check whether you have the time and space for the starter, proving and cooling, without disrupting service at your stall. | If I want to add my own sourdough bread to the existing range, the baking process needs to fit into my working day. Around 21% of consumers give making it themselves the highest priority. |
| Ingredients and claims | Check which grains are used in each product, and verify any wholemeal, gluten-free or iodised salt claims separately. | If I tell customers what kind of bread I offer, I don’t want to infer its properties from the word ‘sourdough’ alone. For around 14% of consumers, accurate label and product information comes first. |
Sourdough refers to the method of preparation; it doesn’t automatically tell you which grain has been used or whether the bread is gluten-free. According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, wheat, rye and barley contain gluten, among other grains.
Check the ingredients and allergen information for the specific bread. Only describe a product as gluten-free if this is confirmed for that product, and take care to prevent cross-contamination when handling it.
The Netherlands Nutrition Centre says that bakers aren’t required to use baker’s salt. So the word ‘sourdough’ doesn’t tell you what kind of salt a loaf contains.
Before making a claim about iodine, check the ingredients list for the specific bread or ask the baker for product information.
Lidl lists its rustic wholemeal sourdough bread as an in-store product. For larger bread orders, Lidl recommends checking with the branch. At ALDI, the freshly baked range is available at shops with an in-store bakery.
Before announcing bread as a regular option at your stall, check the quantities you need, collection time and exact product with your chosen branch.
For unpackaged food, customers must be able to get information about any allergens before deciding to buy, according to the NVWA. This also applies when rusks, chocolate sprinkles and any other ingredients are served together.
Keep allergen information for all the ingredients you use up to date, and make sure customers know how to ask for it at your stall.
Information on making your own sourdough bread, useful when planning your own recipe.
A possible shop to try for rustic wholemeal wheat sourdough bread.
Freshly baked bread could be an option if you want to offer bread alongside rusks with chocolate sprinkles.
Recipe ideas if you want to make your own sourdough bread.
Yes. According to the NVWA, customers must be able to get information about allergens in unpackaged food before they buy. So keep information about the rusks, chocolate sprinkles and any other ingredients you use to hand, and make it clear how customers can ask for it.
If you prepare and sell food several times a year, the NVWA requires you to follow an HACCP food safety plan. An applicable, approved hygiene code can serve this purpose. Check that your bread preparation and serving are covered by the procedures you choose.
Not automatically. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre says that wheat, rye and barley contain gluten, among other grains, and the word ‘sourdough’ doesn’t tell you which grains were used. Check the claims and allergen information for the specific product, and take care to prevent cross-contamination when serving it.
No, you can’t tell from the word ‘sourdough’. According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, bakers aren’t required to use baker’s salt. Check the ingredients list for the bread you choose or ask the baker which salt was used before making any claims about it.
