If you have coeliac disease, avoid ordinary spritz biscuits made with wheat flour, such as Verkade NoboSprits Original. When choosing an alternative, first check that the exact product is labelled gluten-free, then check separately whether it is sugar-free: a sugar claim tells you nothing about gluten.
Your first priority is to check that the exact biscuit is labelled gluten-free. Only then is it worth looking at the sugar claim or type of biscuit. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre describes a gluten-free diet as the treatment for coeliac disease.
You want to be able to check the ‘sugar-free’ claim, but if you have coeliac disease, you also need to choose a product that is separately confirmed as gluten-free. A biscuit with no sugars can still contain wheat flour, as the product information for PLUS Céréal Coconut Biscuits No Sugars shows.
You’d ideally like a spritz biscuit, but want to know when another type of biscuit could be a suitable alternative. Verkade describes its Oaties as gluten-free; that doesn’t make them spritz biscuits, nor does it tell you whether they are sugar-free.
If you have coeliac disease, checking that the exact biscuit is labelled gluten-free comes before choosing a spritz or looking at a sugar claim. Then check the sugars per 100 g in the nutritional information and decide whether another type of biscuit suits you.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Gluten-free labelling | Read the label and ingredients on the packaging of the exact biscuit; don’t rely on a shop or dietary filter alone. | If I have coeliac disease, I want to know first whether this specific biscuit is gluten-free, even if I like its shape. For around 50% of consumers, this confirmation comes first. |
| Sugar-free claim | Compare the claim with the ‘of which sugars’ figure per 100 g; ‘no added sugars’ does not automatically mean ‘sugar-free’. | If you’re specifically looking for a biscuit with no sugars, you don’t want to accidentally choose a product with a different sugar claim. Around 30% of consumers make this distinction their first question when buying. |
| Type of biscuit and how you’ll use it | Check whether a gluten-free alternative is a spritz biscuit or another type, and look at the serving information on the packaging. | Another type of biscuit might suit my biscuit break, but I want to make that decision myself. For around 20% of consumers, the type of biscuit is their first preference. |
According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, a ‘sugar-free’ claim means the product contains no more than 0.5 g of sugar per 100 g. The Dutch Coeliac Society explains that ‘gluten-free’ describes a different property: no more than 20 mg of gluten per kg of product. So one label does not replace the other.
PLUS lists both the sugar claim and wheat flour among the ingredients for Céréal Coconut Biscuits No Sugars. If you have coeliac disease, these are two separate things to check.
First look for a gluten-free label on the exact product, then check the sugar claim separately.
Verkade describes Oaties as gluten-free, but they are a different type of biscuit. A gluten-free label also doesn’t confirm that a product is sugar-free.
Check the type of product and read the ‘of which sugars’ figure per 100 g in the nutritional information.
When you buy the product again, you’ll want to know what’s on the packaging of the item you receive, not just what you remember from an earlier order.
Check the current ingredients and labels on that packaging again.
PLUS lists maltitols as a sweetener in Céréal Coconut Biscuits No Sugars. So checking a biscuit with no sugars involves more than just looking at the ‘of which sugars’ line.
Read the ingredients and any usage warnings on the packaging too.
These product examples show why a spritz biscuit, a gluten-free biscuit and a biscuit with no sugars can’t be treated as the same choice.
Verkade offers an example of a classic spritz biscuit, alongside a separate biscuit that the brand describes as gluten-free.
PLUS’s separate product pages illustrate the difference between gluten-free biscuits and biscuits with no sugars.
Albert Heijn has a separate range category for gluten-free products.
Lidl also points shoppers towards its standard range for gluten-free products.
Not on the basis of the sugar claim alone: ‘sugar-free’ refers to sugars, not gluten. Check that the exact biscuit is labelled gluten-free; for example, PLUS lists wheat flour in Céréal Coconut Biscuits No Sugars.
According to the Dutch Coeliac Society, the label ‘gluten-free’ means the product contains less than 20 mg of gluten per kg. Check the label on the packaging of the biscuit you’re buying, even if you found it using a shop’s gluten-free filter.
No: Verkade lists wheat flour as an ingredient in NoboSprits Original and also warns that it may contain other gluten-containing cereals. If you have coeliac disease, look for a biscuit labelled gluten-free on the exact product.
Because the sugar claim doesn’t tell you which grains or sweeteners a biscuit contains. PLUS lists both wheat flour and maltitols in Céréal Coconut Biscuits No Sugars, so check the ingredients and any warnings as well as the nutritional information.
