Vegemite

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Vegemite (IPA: /'vedʒɪˌmɑet/) is a dark brown, salty food paste made from yeast extract, used mainly as a spread on sandwiches and toast, and occasionally in cooking. It is similar to British Marmite and Swiss Cenovis.

Vegemite is made from leftover brewers' yeast extract, a by-product of beer manufacture, and various vegetable and spice additives. The taste may be described as extremely salty, slightly bitter, and malty, similar to the taste of beef bouillon. The texture is smooth, resembling margarine, although somewhat firmer and sticky. It is firmer and slightly sweeter than other yeast extracts.

Vegemite is popular with many Australians and New Zealanders at home and abroad, such that it is often playfully described as a "national food". However, it is not liked by all Australians — some find it far too salty to be palatable — and it has not been successfully marketed elsewhere, with some developing an intense dislike to Vegemite's distinctive taste. Nevertheless, Vegemite is an Australian cultural icon and can be found in various shops around the world, particularly where there are large populations of Australian expatriates.

Vegemite was invented in 1923 by food technologist Dr. Cyril P. Callister when his employer, the Australian company Fred Walker & Co, tasked him with developing a spread from brewer's yeast, following the disruption of supplies of imported yeast spreads after World War I. Vegemite was registered as a trade mark in Australia that same year. The registration was later transferred to Kraft Foods, a U.S. multinational that is part of the Altria Group of companies, which has maintained an interest in Vegemite since the 1920s.

Contents 1 History 1.1 The "banning" of Vegemite in the U.S. 2 Nutritional information 3 Brand 4 Australian Slang 5 Popular culture 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

[edit] History

The name "vegemite" was selected at random out of a hat by Fred Walker's daughter, Sheilah. Faced with growing competition from the similar British Marmite from which it was originally copied, the product was known from 1928 to 1935 as "Parwill", allowing a convoluted advertising slogan that said "Marmite but Parwill" — that is, "Ma (mother) might not like the taste but I'm sure Pa (father) will." This attempt to expand market share was unsuccessful and the name was changed back to Vegemite. Today Vegemite far outsells Marmite and other similar spreads in Australia.

[edit] The "banning" of Vegemite in the U.S.

In October 2006, the Melbourne Herald Sun incorrectly reported that Vegemite had been banned in the United States, and that the U.S. Customs Service had gone so far as to search Australians entering the country for Vegemite. The origin of the story appears to have been an anecdote from a traveler who claimed to have been searched, and a spokesperson for Kraft Foods who made a misinformed comment to reporters. The story led to some anti-American comments in blogs and newspapers. The Herald Sun blamed the U.S. President for the ban, and encouraged readers to post comments on its website and send emails to the White House telling Bush "to back off".

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration later stated that although it is technically illegal in the U.S. to add folate to food products other than bread or cereal, there were no plans to investigate whether Vegemite contains folate, to subject it to an import ban, or to have it withdrawn from U.S. supermarket shelves. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection also tried to dispel the rumour, stating on its website that "there is no known prohibition on the importation of Vegemite" and "there is no official policy within CBP targeting Vegemite for interception".^[1] The story of the "ban" later took on the status of urban legend.^[2] While Vegemite has never been abundant in the U.S., it can still be purchased at some stores that stock imported foods.^[3]

[edit] Nutritional information

Per 5 g suggested serving size Energy - 41 kJ Protein - 1.3 g Carbohydrate Total - 1 g Sugars - Less than 1 g Fat Total - Less than 1 g Saturated - Less than 1 g Niacin - 2500 µg (25% RDA) Thiamine - 550 µg (50% RDA) Riboflavin - 430 µg (25% RDA) Folate - 100 µg (50% RDA) Sodium - 169 mg

Per 100 g Energy - 811 kJ Protein - 25.6 g Carbohydrate Total - 19.5 g Sugars - 1.7 g Fat Total - Less than 1 g Saturated - Less than 1 g Niacin - 50 mg Thiamine - 11 mg Riboflavin - 8.6 mg Folate - 2000 µg Sodium - 3380 mg

RDA = Recommended Daily Allowance.

[edit] Brand

Vegemite's rise to popularity was helped by marketing campaigns begun in 1954, using groups of smiling, attractive healthy children singing a catchy jingle entitled "We're happy little Vegemites".

The lyrics to the jingle are:

We're hap-py lit-tle Veg-e-mites

As bright as bright can be.

We all en-joy our Ve-ge-mite

For break-fast, lunch, and tea.

Our mum-mies say we're grow-ing stron-ger

Eve-ry sin-gle week,

Be-cause we love our Ve-ge-mite -

We all a-dore our Ve-ge-mite -

It puts a rose in eve-ry cheek.

The two young twin girls who sang this advertising jingle were known as the "Vegemite Twins". In March 2007, Kraft announced that they are trying to trace the original children from the campaign to celebrate the advertisement's fiftieth anniversary.

[edit] Australian Slang

This jingle gave rise to an Australian slang expression "happy little Vegemite" = a happy person. This first became popular in the 1980s. Since then it has also been extended, ad hoc, to various complimentary expressions utilising the same structure, such as "good little Vegemite", "clever little Vegemite".

Another set of Australian slang expressions using Vegemite refer to anal sex. Since the 1980s to "drill for Vegemite" has been used to refer to anal sex, and "Vegemite driller" has been used as a disparaging term for a gay man. Similarly, "Vegemite Valley" refers to the rectum in sexual contexts.^[4]

[edit] Popular culture

Vegemite came to the attention of many people outside the region in the lyrics of the 1982 worldwide hit song "Down Under" by Men at Work:

I said, "Do you speak-a my language?"

He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich.

The original 1986 lyric to the John Williamson song True Blue included the lines

"Is it standing by your mate

When he's in a fight?

Or just Vegemite?"

When Vegemite was sold to Kraft, Williamson changed the line "Or just vegemite" to "Or will she be right?"

In Terry Pratchett's 1998 Discworld novel The Last Continent, which is mostly set on an island parodying Australia and its culture, the character Rincewind accidentally creates a Vegemite-like concoction by allowing a number of vegetables, salt and beer mixed together in a tin can to boil dry on a campfire overnight.

[edit] See also

• Marmite
• Aussie Mite (created because Vegemite is now owned by an international corporation)
• Cenovis
• Promite
• Vitam-R (especially popular in Germany, but available in health food stores in the UK)
• Viandox a liquid form of a marmite-like substance, sold in France
• Bovril

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• vegemite.com.au
• Foster's Group, Brewing - source of Vegemite Yeast

Kraft brands
Capri Sun | Crystal Light | Dairylea | General Foods | Jell-O | Kool-Aid | Kraft Dinner | Maxwell House | Oscar Mayer | Post Cereals | Tang | Toblerone | Vegemite