Made from a by-product of the beer brewing process, the yeast extract Marmite is a popular UK sandwich and toast spread similar to Australia's Vegemite.
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The Marmite Food Extract Company was formed in Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, in 1902.
Marmite 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.
Advertised variously as "The Growing Up Spread" and "My Mate, Marmite", Marmite tends to be an acquired taste, with no middle ground. It is the food item most commonly missed and imported by British expatriates in other countries. People tend to love it or hate it -- in fact, two websites have been set up where either camp are invited to leave their comments: I love Marmite and I hate Marmite. The snack food Twiglets is flavoured with a substance resembling Marmite.
The spread is packaged in a distinctive bulbous brown glass jar. The shape is meant to resemble a cooking pot, for which the French word is la marmite; the label has a picture of the cooking pot. An occasional surreal sight on British roads is a large tanker lorry (presumably taking yeast to the factory) with the round end of the tank painted to resemble the Marmite jar and label.
Elsewhere, Marmite is still quite unknown, and hard to find (June 2003). Hence, we present a list of stores where one could find Marmite, sorted by country.
Introduction
Outlets
Marmite is widespread and available in most food stores in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. The variety of Marmite available in Australia and New Zealand is however significantly different in taste to UK Marmite and comes in different packaging; it is manufactured by the company Sanitarium. In the following countries it is at least available in big supermarkets and health food stores:
Israel, South Africa, France
Paris:
Poland
Warsaw: (Warszawa)
Apparently, Tesco managers order a crate of it to be sent over from Blighty when the local expats become too vociferous in their condemnation of Tesco's failure to provide British things like real marmalade and cheddar cheese.
