Choose a rustic wholemeal hearth or sourdough loaf if the bread is going to be a visible part of your festival meal. If you mainly need to make and hand out lots of sandwiches quickly, look for sliced wholemeal bread. If fibre, salt or ingredients matter more to your group, compare the nutritional information and allergens for the specific products.
You’re looking for wholemeal bread that will be a visible part of a meal featuring generously filled sandwiches or sharing bread. When choosing a rustic hearth or sourdough loaf, portion sizes, allergens and availability are important things to check.
You want to be able to make and hand out several sandwiches quickly. A whole or half sliced wholemeal loaf can be more convenient than a loaf you still need to slice on the spot.
You want to weigh up the shape of the loaf and its ingredients against its fibre and salt content, as well as any allergens. Compare the nutritional information for each product: an average value for wholemeal bread won’t necessarily match the loaf you buy.
First decide whether the bread will be a standout part of the meal or whether you mainly need to hand it out quickly. Then compare the packaging of the loaves you can actually buy.
| What to consider | What to check | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Bread for the meal | See whether a hearth or sourdough loaf will work with your planned fillings and whether you can serve it in suitable portions. | If the bread is the base for generously filled sandwiches, I want a loaf shape that suits the meal. For around 40% of consumers, how the meal is presented comes first. |
| Making and handing out sandwiches quickly | Check whether the bread is available sliced and whether a whole or half loaf will provide enough portions. | When I need to hand out lots of sandwiches, I don’t want to have to slice everything on the spot. For around 30% of consumers, convenience is the top priority. |
| Ingredients and nutritional information | Compare fibre and salt per 100 g, and read the ingredients and allergen information on the current packaging. | When choosing bread for several visitors, I want to know what’s in it and be able to compare products properly. For around 30% of consumers, label information matters most. |
The Netherlands Nutrition Centre gives 3.4 g of fibre per 50 g of wholemeal bread as an average; the figure for a particular loaf may differ. A comparison a brand makes for its own product doesn’t automatically apply to other loaves either.
Compare the current labels side by side, using the same unit for fibre and salt, such as per 100 g.
The terms hearth bread and sourdough bread don’t tell you which ingredients and allergens are listed on the packaging of the product you’ve chosen. This is especially important if you’re sharing the bread with others.
Keep the packaging or full product information to hand and check the allergens in the bread you’re serving.
A type of bread shown online won’t necessarily be available at the shop where you do your shopping. This can make planning harder if you need that particular loaf shape.
Check with your chosen shop shortly before buying, and decide in advance which other type of loaf would work for the same meal.
The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) explains the conditions under which iodine compounds may be present in bread through baker’s salt. That doesn’t mean every wholemeal loaf contains iodised salt.
If you want to check a particular loaf, look at the ingredients on the current packaging.
Albert Heijn has listed several wholemeal loaves, including AH Boeren grof volkorenbrood.
Jumbo lists wholemeal loaves in various shapes and styles, including fine, coarse and round loaves, as well as sunflower seed varieties.
Lidl lists a rustic wholemeal wheat sourdough loaf as an option if you’d like to serve sourdough with your festival meal.
ALDI lists a product called Extra High-Fibre Wholemeal Bread for anyone who wants to compare fibre and salt on the label.
PLUS lists Korenlanders Rustiek Vloerbrood Volkoren, a hearth loaf made with ingredients including wholemeal wheat flour and rye components.
Dirk lists a wholemeal hearth loaf as a possible choice for a festival meal.
A rustic hearth or sourdough loaf works well if you want the bread to be a visible part of the meal alongside generously filled sandwiches. Sliced wholemeal bread is a good option when making and handing out sandwiches quickly is the priority. In either case, make sure the portions suit your plans and check the current ingredients and allergens.
You can, provided the storage and freezing instructions for the loaf you’ve chosen allow it. Albert Heijn says that AH Boeren grof volkorenbrood can be frozen at home and should be used within one month; don’t assume the same instructions apply to another loaf.
Read the allergen information for the bread you’re actually serving, and keep the packaging available in case visitors have questions. Don’t rely on terms such as wholemeal or rustic alone: ingredients vary from product to product.
No. Don’t assume that every wholemeal loaf contains iodised salt. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) explains that iodine compounds may only be present in bread through added baker’s salt, with a maximum of 65 mg of iodine per kg of salt. Check the ingredients on the packaging for a specific loaf.
