If you’re a small household and fancy bread with chocolate sprinkles, a half loaf may be a better fit for the amount you’ll use. Check the bread, sprinkles and any spread separately for animal-derived ingredients: ‘plain’ chocolate sprinkles aren’t automatically vegan. Rusks are different from a half loaf, so check their own label too. And don’t assume bread contains iodised salt without checking the label.
You want the bread or rusks, chocolate sprinkles and any spread to fit your vegan choices. According to the Dutch Association for Veganism, the word ‘plant-based’ on its own doesn’t guarantee that a product is entirely plant-based.
You want to choose an amount of bread you can finish, or freeze according to the instructions on the packaging. A half loaf is different from rusks.
You want to check the label to see whether your chosen bread contains iodised salt or bakers’ salt. According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, using bakers’ salt is not compulsory.
First decide whether you want to buy rusks or a smaller amount of bread. Then check each part of the combination separately: a vegan label on the bread tells you nothing about the chocolate sprinkles.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Vegan ingredients | Check the current ingredients for the bread or rusks, chocolate sprinkles and any spread. Look out for milk ingredients and egg, among other things. | I want to avoid animal-derived ingredients in the whole combination, not just the bread. For around 42% of consumers, checking for vegan ingredients comes first. |
| A smaller supply of bread | Check whether it’s a half loaf and follow the storage instructions if you want to freeze some. | If I don’t eat much bread, I want to buy an amount I can use or store in time. Around 33% of consumers give a smaller supply the highest priority. |
| Wholemeal and iodised salt | Check the bread description, nutrition information and ingredients list for iodised salt or bakers’ salt. | When choosing bread, I also want to be able to see whether it’s wholemeal and contains iodised salt. For around 25% of consumers, this is the main thing to consider. |
According to the product information from Albert Heijn and Jumbo, the De Ruijter and Venz plain chocolate sprinkles examined contain fractionated milk fat. So the word ‘plain’ doesn’t rule out milk ingredients.
Check the ingredients on the pack you’ve chosen before pairing the sprinkles with vegan bread or rusks.
According to the Dutch Association for Veganism, this label doesn’t guarantee that a product is entirely plant-based. Jumbo describes its Chocoladehagelslag Puur 600 g as ‘Plant-based’, but also displays the warning ‘May contain: Milk’.
Check the full product information and decide separately how you feel about any may-contain warning.
According to Jumbo, its Volkoren Brood Koolhydraatarm Half contains free-range egg powder. ‘Half’ and ‘wholemeal’ describe the bread, not whether it’s suitable for a vegan diet.
Check the specific type of bread for a vegan label and read the ingredients list.
According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, using bakers’ salt is not compulsory. So you can’t assume, based on the product category, that bread is made with iodised salt.
Check the packaging of your chosen bread to see whether iodised salt or bakers’ salt is listed in the ingredients.
At Albert Heijn, the half loaf and the chocolate sprinkles are separate choices: a label on one product doesn’t apply to the other.
Jumbo has half-loaf and plain chocolate sprinkle varieties that have been checked; check the ingredients for each variety.
De Ruijter offers chocolate sprinkles and Kleintjes portion packs; the variety determines which ingredients you’re buying.
With Venz, the name of the chocolate variety doesn’t tell you on its own whether the sprinkles are vegan.
No. According to the product information shown, the De Ruijter and Venz plain chocolate sprinkles examined contain fractionated milk fat. Check the ingredients for the variety you want to buy, even if the packaging says ‘plain’.
No. For example, Jumbo lists free-range egg powder in its Volkoren Brood Koolhydraatarm Half, while Albert Heijn labels AH Vloerbrood volkoren half as ‘Vegan’. So check the specific loaf rather than relying on the words ‘half’ and ‘wholemeal’.
No. According to the Netherlands Nutrition Centre, using bakers’ salt isn’t compulsory. Check the label of your chosen bread for iodised salt or bakers’ salt instead of assuming every loaf contains it.
Follow the storage instructions for your chosen bread and freeze some in good time if the packaging allows it. Albert Heijn says AH Zaans volkoren half can be frozen at home on the day of purchase and used within one month.
