Marmite ( MAR-myte) is a British savoury spread based on yeast extract invented by the Marmite Food Company in 1902. It is made from by-products of beer brewing (trub) and is produced by the British company Unilever. Marmite is a vegan source of B vitamins, including supplementary vitamin B12. It is traditionally eaten spread thinly on buttered toast. Marmite is a sticky dark-brown paste with a distinctive, salty, powerful flavour and heady aroma. This distinctive taste is represented in the marketing slogan: "Love it or hate it." Such is its prominence in British culture that Marmite is often used as a metaphor for something that is an acquired taste or polarises opinion. Marmite is commonly used as a flavouring, as it is known for its savoury taste due to its high levels of glutamate (1960mg/100g). The image on the jar shows a marmite (French: [maʁmit]), a French term for a large, covered earthenware or metal cooking pot. Marmite was originally supplied in earthenware pots but since the 1920s has been sold in glass jars. Marmite's distinctive bulbous jars are supplied by the German glass manufacturer Gerresheimer. Similar products include the Australian Vegemite (whose name is derived from that of Marmite), the Swiss Cenovis, the Brazilian Cenovit, the long-extinct Argentine Condibé, the French Viandox, and the German Vitam-R. Marmite in New Zealand has been manufactured since 1919 under licence, but with a different recipe; it is the only one sold as Marmite in Australasia and the Pacific Islands, whereas elsewhere the British version predominates.
History The first yeast extract spread was invented during the late 19th century when the German scientist Justus von Liebig discovered that brewer's yeast could be concentrated, bottled and eaten. Initial attempts to manufacture this yeast extract for commercial purposes had little success. This was until 1902, when the Marmite Food Extract Company was formed in Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England with Marmite as its main product and Burton as the site of the first factory. The by-product yeast needed for the paste was supplied by Bass Brewery. The initial producers of Marmite found that the yeast produced from British beer did not lend itself to the same treatment as continental yeast, which had different methods of fermentation. New machinery and manufacturing processes were implemented before a satisfactory yeast extract product was ready to market. By 1907, the product had become successful enough to warrant construction of a second factory at Camberwell Green in London. By 1912, the discovery of vitamins was a boost for Marmite, as the spread is a rich source of the vitamin B complex; with the vitamin B1 deficiency beriberi being common during World War I, the spread became more popular. British troops during World War I were issued Marmite as part of their rations. During the 1930s, Marmite was used by the English haematologist and physician researcher Lucy Wills to successfully treat a form of anaemia in mill workers in Bombay (present-day Mumbai), British India. She later identified folic acid as the active ingredient. Marmite was used to treat malnutrition by Suriya-Mal workers during the 1934–35 malaria epidemic in British Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka). Housewives were encouraged to spread Marmite thinly and to "use it sparingly just now" because of limited rations of the product. In 1990, Marmite Limited, which had become a subsidiary of Bovril Limited, was bought by CPC International Inc, 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.
Similar products
There are a number of similar yeast products available in other countries; these products are not directly connected to the original Marmite recipe and brand. The Australian product Vegemite was developed in early 1920s by the chemist and food technologist Cyril Callister for Fred Walker & Co. due to shortages of Marmite exports to Australia as a result of the First World War. It is now distributed in many countries. AussieMite is another marmite-like product sold in Australia. Other products include OzeMite, which is made by Dick Smith Foods; Cenovit, a Brazilian spread; Vitam-R, a German spread; Cenovis, a Swiss spread (sold internationally under the brand Sonaris); and Vegex, an autolyzed yeast product available in the United States since 1913. In the United Kingdom, own-branded yeast extract, very similar to Marmite, is sold by Sainsbury's, Asda, Tesco and Aldi.
Usage
Marmite has traditionally been eaten as a savoury spread on bread, toast, savoury biscuits or crackers, and other similar baked products. Owing to its concentrated taste, it is often spread very thinly in combination with butter or margarine. It can be made into a savoury hot drink by adding one teaspoon to a mug of hot water, much like Oxo or Bovril. It is also commonly used to enrich casseroles and stews. Marmite is often paired with cheese—for example, in a cheese sandwich or a cheese-flavoured biscuit such as Mini Cheddars. In the UK, Starbucks offers cheese and Marmite panini. There are Marmite-flavoured varieties of Walkers Crisps, and of some brands of rice cakes and biscuits. Marmite has also been used as an ingredient in cocktails, including the Marmite Cocktail and the Marmite Gold Rush. Celebrity chefs have created signature Marmite-flavoured recipes: Nigella Lawson has one for Marmite spaghetti, and Heston Blumenthal has one for Marmite consommé. In 2020, Marmite launched a campaign on Instagram—"The Great Marmite Experiment"—encouraging people to share their Marmite-flavoured recipes. The many entries in response included roast potatoes, beef Wellington and cookies. In Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong, Marmite is enjoyed stirred into congee (savoury rice porridge), and in an intensely savoury Malaysian dish (local Chinese dish) called Marmite chicken, consisting of fried pieces of chicken tossed in a Marmite sauce.
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