Marmite

A jar of Marmite

Marmite is a British savoury spread made from yeast extract, a by-product of the beer brewing process. It is a sticky, dark brown paste with a distinctive, powerful taste that polarises consumer opinion and prompts its advertising slogan that you either "love it or hate it". It is similar to Australia and New Zealand's Vegemite, Promite and Marmite—which is the name of a different, though similar, product (see below)—and Switzerland's Cenovis, and is suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

As the image on the front of every jar shows, a marmite is actually a "large covered earthenware or metal cooking pot," a word from French. [1] Marmite was originally supplied in earthenware pots, but has long been sold in glass jars that approximate the shape of such pots. [2] A thinner version in squeezable plastic jars was introduced in March 2006.

Introduction

The Marmite Food Extract Company was formed in Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England, in 1902, with Marmite as its main product. By 1907, the product had become successful enough to warrant construction of a second factory at Camberwell Green in London [3]. Today, the main ingredients of Marmite manufactured in the UK are yeast extract, with lesser quantities of sodium chloride (common salt), wheatgerm extract, niacin, thiamine, spice extracts, riboflavin, and folic acid, although the precise composition is kept as a trade secret. By 1912, the discovery of vitamins was a boost for Marmite, as the spread is a rich source of the vitamin B complex; vitamin B₁₂ is not naturally found in yeast extract, but is added to Marmite during manufacture.

In 1990, Marmite Limited—which had become a subsidiary of Bovril Limited—was bought by CPC (United Kingdom) Limited, which changed its name to Best Foods Inc in 1998. Best Foods Inc subsequently merged with Unilever in 2000, and Marmite is now a trademark owned by Unilever.

Marmite's publicity campaigns initially emphasised the spread's healthy nature, extolling it as "The growing up spread you never grow out of". During the 1980s, the spread was advertised with the slogan "My mate, Marmite", delivered in television commercials by an army platoon (the spread had been a standard vitamin supplement for British-based German POWs during the Second World War). By the 1990s, another strand entered the company's marketing efforts; Marmite's distinctive and powerful taste had earned it as many detractors as it had fans, and it was commonly notorious for producing a binary and exclusive "love/hate" reaction amongst consumers. Modern advertisements play on this, and Marmite runs two websites, I Love Marmite and I Hate Marmite, where people may share their experiences of Marmite.

A 2004 UK TV advert, which parodied the 1958 Steve McQueen film The Blob, substituting Marmite for the original alien space menace and including frightening scenes of fleeing people, was dropped after being screened on children's television: a few concerned parents reported that their children were scared by the ads and had nightmares after viewing them. [4]

The original and squeezy version of Marmite.

Marmite is not generally available worldwide, and is frequently cited as the most-missed foodstuff by British expatriates. Paul Ridout, a British backpacker kidnapped by Kashmiri separatists in 1994, was quoted as saying "It was pretty good. It's just one of those things—you get out of the country and it's all you can think about." [5]

Bill Bryson, in Notes from a Small Island writes: "There are certain things that you have to be British, or at least older than me, or possibly both, to appreciate: skiffle music, salt-cellars with a single hole, [and] Marmite (an edible yeast extract with the visual properties of an industrial lubricant)..." [6]

In 2006, a new "squeeze" jar of Marmite was released. It was released to make the Marmite easier to get out. The "squeezy" jar is made of plastic, and when first launched the "Marmite" logo was replaced by the words "squeeze me".

Serving suggestions

Marmite is traditionally eaten as a savoury spread on bread, toast, and savoury biscuits. Due to its concentrated taste it should be spread thinly with butter or margarine. Its powerful taste limits its applications otherwise; nonetheless, in 2003, the Absolute Press published Paul Hartley's "The Marmite Cookbook", containing recipes and suggestions on how to blend Marmite with other foodstuffs. [7]

Marmite also works well with cheese (such as in a cheese sandwich) and has been used as an additional flavouring in Mini Cheddars, a savoury cheese-flavoured biscuit snack. Marmite has also been used by Walkers Crisps for a special-edition flavour.

The Marmite connoisseur Lesley Dusart suggests that marmite can be used as part of a gravy and also suggests a recipe for the perfect marmite on toast:
*Toasted bread
*Lots of butter
*Thin layer of marmite
*(This can also be applied to cheese and marmite sandwiches)

In New Zealand, it is sometimes spread thinly on bread with packet potato chips added to make a "Marmite And Chip Sandwich", or spread thickly on bread prior to toasting, cooked, then eaten slathered with butter.

In Sri Lanka it is dissolved in boiling water and some lime juice and a fried, sliced onion is added, allegedly an excellent pick-me-up drink for recovering from a hangover.

Nigella Lawson's recipe for Marmite sandwiches:

Whisk soft unsalted butter with some Marmite and then spread the peanut-butter coloured mix on to sliced white bread. 100g butter is enough to sandwich the slices of one loaf, the quantity of Marmite depends on whether you want a mild-tasting, buff-coloured cream or a salty-strong, sunbed-tan glaze.

Availability worldwide

Marmite as sold in Australia and New Zealand

Marmite is widespread and available in most food stores in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa, all parts of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Countries where Marmite has some limited availability, such as some supermarkets and health food stores: