Buyer for a busy coffee station
You want enough biscuits for several colleagues. Compare the weight with the stated number of biscuits or portions, and think about how you’ll store an opened pack.
Choose a large sharing pack if lots of colleagues will be helping themselves and the biscuits will be eaten quickly. If attendance varies, packs within the main pack let you keep some biscuits sealed; individual sachets are more practical when you want to hand them out person by person. Whatever you choose, check the biscuit count and the current allergen information on the label.
You want enough biscuits for several colleagues. Compare the weight with the stated number of biscuits or portions, and think about how you’ll store an opened pack.
In a small office or one where attendance varies, you won’t want to keep opening large packs. Inner packs mean you can leave some of the biscuits sealed.
You want to check which allergens are relevant to your colleagues before handing out the biscuits. Check the current label for the biscuits you’ve chosen; a vegan claim doesn’t replace this check.
First decide how the biscuits will be used: from a shared stock, across several coffee breaks or portioned out for each person in advance. Then compare the quantity and check the label before handing them out.
Best for: lots of colleagues helping themselves from one pack that will be used up quickly.
Bear in mind: once opened, you’ll need to seal the biscuits according to the storage instructions and portion them out yourself.
Best for: stock used over several coffee breaks, when you want to keep some packs sealed.
Bear in mind: an inner pack isn’t necessarily a portion for each colleague.
Best for: handing out biscuits to each person or meeting in advance.
Bear in mind: check how many sachets and biscuits are in the pack before planning how to hand them out.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who is this most important for? |
|---|---|---|
| Quantity | Compare the weight with the stated number of biscuits or portions and how many you expect to use. | If the coffee station is busy, I want to avoid running out too quickly. Having enough in the pack is the main priority for around 25% of consumers. |
| Storage | Check whether there are inner packs and what the storage instructions say once opened. | When attendance varies, I don’t want to open all the biscuits at once. Around 19% of consumers prioritise managing stock that is used slowly. |
| Handing them out | Check how many individual portions there are and how many biscuits each portion contains. | For a meeting, I want to be able to portion out the biscuits in advance rather than pass around an open pack. This is the main concern for around 31% of consumers. |
| Allergens | Read the current label, including any warnings about cross-contamination. | Before putting out biscuits for my colleagues, I want to know whether any listed allergens could be a problem for them. This check comes first for around 25% of consumers. |
A 600 g pack contains more than a 250 g pack, but that alone doesn’t tell you how many biscuits or portions you can hand out. For example, Albert Heijn lists 48 portions for its 600 g AH Bakkers speculaas; the portion size may differ from that of another product.
When planning office supplies, compare the weight, stated quantity and expected usage.
If the team eats the biscuits over several days, a large pack will be open after the first coffee break. For AH Bakkers speculaas, Albert Heijn recommends storing the biscuits in a sealed tin after opening; the Lotus Biscoff Mega Pack contains three 125 g inner packs.
Choose a pack format that suits how quickly you’ll use the biscuits, and follow the storage instructions for the product you choose.
A vegan claim doesn’t mean that biscuits are free from wheat, soya or other allergens. The information for the Lotus Biscoff varieties reviewed lists wheat and soya.
Ask which allergens are relevant to your colleagues and check the label on the exact pack just before handing out the biscuits.
The speculoos varieties reviewed include a 250 g pack, a 375 g Mega Pack and an XL pack with ten sachets of two biscuits.
AH Bakkers speculaas is a 600 g sharing pack, with Albert Heijn stating that it contains 48 portions.
Jumbo Speculoos Koekjes comes in a smaller 250 g sharing pack; Jumbo states that it contains around eleven portions.
ALDI describes Biscotto Bakkersspeculaas, in a 600 g pack, as containing 48 biscuits.
Sondey is a range of biscuits and snacks from Lidl. Lidl also lists a 600 g Bakkers speculaas product for in-store sale.
These biscuits suit different office coffee breaks: smaller packs for handing out a set number, and a pack with a stated biscuit count to share. Compare the quantity with the size of your team; not every product is a large sharing pack.
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A pack for a coffee break when you want to hand out a limited number of biscuits. Check whether 8 pieces and 200 g will be enough for the colleagues attending.
Check the current allergen information on the label before handing them out.
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Worth considering if you want to hand out the biscuits individually. The pack contains 403 g; check the number of portions on the packaging to plan how many to hand out.
If you have allergies, read the current product label.
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A small pack for a modest coffee break, and not necessarily enough for a large team. When planning, check how many portions you can serve from 150 g.
Before handing them out, read the current label for ingredients including milk, wheat and soya, as well as any warnings about nuts.
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A pack of biscuits to share over coffee. Joybuy states that this 250 g variety contains around 32 biscuits; check whether that’s enough for how many you expect to serve.
If you want to hand out sealed portions to each colleague, check how the pack is divided. Also read the current allergen information on the label.
A large pack works well for a shared coffee station if the biscuits will be eaten quickly and you can store them according to the label once opened. If you want to hand them out to each colleague or meeting, look for individual portions; inner packs can be handy when you’ll be using them over several occasions.
Follow the storage instructions on the pack you’ve chosen. For AH Bakkers speculaas, Albert Heijn recommends storing the biscuits in a cool, dark and dry place and putting them in a sealed tin once opened.
No. A vegan claim doesn’t mean that biscuits are free from allergens. Check the current label on the exact pack for anything that could affect your colleagues, even if the product is marketed as vegan.
Not necessarily. According to the Voedingscentrum, this kind of warning may indicate possible cross-contamination rather than nuts being deliberately added. If you’re choosing biscuits for someone with a relevant allergy, take the warning into account and check the current label.