If you’re looking for a strictly sugar-free chocolate biscuit for a TV night, check that it contains no more than 0.5 g of sugars per 100 g and actually lists chocolate or cocoa as an ingredient. The Céréal sugar-free chocolate chip cookie listed by Albert Heijn combines chocolate pieces and cocoa with 0 g of sugars per 100 g. Also check the warning about polyols and the allergen information for this product.
You’re looking for a biscuit containing chocolate or cocoa to enjoy in front of the TV, and you want its sugar content to fall within the limit for a ‘sugar-free’ claim. Both the ingredients and the nutritional information need to meet your requirements.
You’re looking for a biscuit that’s low in sugars or has no added sugars, but a plain biscuit will do if it doesn’t contain chocolate. It’s still important to distinguish between the exact sugar claim and the amount per 100 g.
You want to know which sweeteners have been used, whether there’s a warning on the packaging, and which allergens the product contains or may contain before you choose.
If ‘sugar-free’ is a must, first check the sugars per 100 g. Then look separately at the chocolate ingredients, sweeteners and allergens: a biscuit may meet one requirement but not another.
| What to look for | What to check | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Strict sugar limit | Read the ‘of which sugars’ value per 100 g. Under EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006, biscuits can contain no more than 0.5 g of sugars per 100 g to make a ‘sugar-free’ claim. | If I’m looking for a strictly sugar-free option, I don’t want to rely on just ‘zero’ or ‘no added sugars’ on the front of the pack. Around 46% of consumers put this sugar limit first. |
| Chocolate or cocoa | Check that chocolate or cocoa is actually listed as an ingredient, and assess the sugar content separately. | For my TV night, I want a biscuit with chocolate, not an ordinary biscuit by mistake. For around 27% of consumers, this ingredient is the top priority. |
| Sweeteners | Check the ingredients list for polyols such as maltitol or isomalt, and look out for a warning about excessive consumption. | When I’m considering biscuits with sweeteners, I want to know what warning applies to the product. This check matters most to around 18% of consumers. |
| Allergens | Check the current packaging for both the allergens the biscuit contains and those it may contain. | If I need to avoid certain allergens, the information on the label must suit my needs. Around 9% of consumers put this check first. |
These claims don’t mean the same thing. Verkade lists 1.7 g of sugars per 100 g for San Francisco Zero, while the limit for a ‘sugar-free’ claim under EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 is 0.5 g per 100 g.
If you want a strictly sugar-free option, use the ‘of which sugars’ value per 100 g as your check.
The Céréal sugar-free chocolate chip cookie listed by Albert Heijn contains 26 g of polyols per 100 g. The product information states that excessive consumption may have a laxative effect.
Before choosing a portion of biscuits with sweeteners, read the ingredients and any warnings on the packaging.
According to Lotus Bakeries, Lotus Speculoos with chocolate contains 22% chocolate, but its nutrition table also lists 39.6 g of sugars per 100 g. The presence of chocolate alone tells you nothing about whether the product can be labelled sugar-free.
If both matter to you, check the chocolate ingredients and sugars per 100 g separately.
The Joybuy product title for Panpan oat biscuits uses the words ‘sugar-free’, while the nutrition table lists 11.7 g of sugars per 100 g. They’re also oat biscuits, not chocolate biscuits.
Don’t take a conflicting title and nutrition table as confirmation that a product is ‘sugar-free’. Check the packaging before making your choice.
Here, we compare specific biscuits rather than a brand’s full range. The difference between a chocolate biscuit, a plain biscuit and a product with no added sugars can make all the difference to your choice.
The sugar-free chocolate chip cookie is worth considering if you’re looking for both chocolate ingredients and a sugar content within the limit for a ‘sugar-free’ claim.
AH Digestive 0% sugar is a sugar-free biscuit to compare if chocolate isn’t a requirement.
San Francisco Zero is worth considering if you’re looking for a biscuit with no added sugars and don’t need it to contain chocolate.
Speculoos with chocolate is a chocolate option to assess separately if flavour matters more to you than choosing a sugar-free product.
Under EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006, a biscuit can contain no more than 0.5 g of sugars per 100 g to make a ‘sugar-free’ claim. So check the ‘of which sugars’ value per 100 g in the nutrition table, even if the front of the pack says ‘zero’.
No. Verkade markets San Francisco Zero as having no added sugars, but lists 1.7 g of sugars per 100 g. That’s more than the 0.5 g per 100 g limit for a ‘sugar-free’ claim.
Follow the storage instructions on the packaging. For the Céréal sugar-free chocolate chip cookie, the product information published by Albert Heijn says to store it in a cool, dry place. Also read the warning about excessive consumption of products containing polyols.
No. Check the current allergen information on the packaging. The Céréal sugar-free chocolate chip cookie listed by Albert Heijn contains wheat and oats, and may also contain milk, egg, nuts, soya and sesame. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority highlights the importance of allergen information in preventing allergic reactions.
