# Aussie Dopers - Vegemite harder to spread?? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 18, 2011, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771 "2011-02-18T03:11:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BACI](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ce73a5/32.png) [@BACI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BACI)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/1 "2011-02-18T03:11:43Z")
Is it just me - it _is_ just me, I’m sure - but lately the Vegemite I spread on toast seems to be thicker than before, and invariably (a) tears the toast, and (b) ends up clumping awkwardly. I don’t recall having this issue in the past - it always spread in a neutral kind of unexceptionally spready kind of way. But now, well I’ll be honest with you - it’s starting to piss me off a bit. Damned Vegemite. It’s just me, isn’t it…? ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/2 "2011-02-18T03:15:18Z")
Just you I think, do you keep it in the fridge now? Also I have noticed that bread from Woolworths/Coles has gotten a lot more “fluffy”, could they be fluffing up the bread so they can achieve a cheaper price by using less ingredients? They wouldn’t would they? FYI I make my own bread and haven’t noticed the bread ripping. ---
**Author:** ![BACI](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ce73a5/32.png) [@BACI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BACI)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/3 "2011-02-18T03:22:09Z")
Hmmm. No fridge for my Vegemite. And we’re using a range of breads - all store bought but with a range of fluffiossitude. The butter still works like it did in the good old days, and when I alternate with peanut butter it just spreads on like a lumpy tan dream. Curious. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/4 "2011-02-18T04:11:32Z")
Temperature/climate change? Changed residences? Maybe check the sell-by date (assuming that Vegemite has one). ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/5 "2011-02-18T04:32:31Z")
I haven’t noticed an appreciable difference in its spreadability. ---
**Author:** ![TravisFromOR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cc9497/32.png) [@TravisFromOR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TravisFromOR)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/6 "2011-02-18T04:44:14Z")
I spread mine on bagels. (Not in Aussie-land, but my local health food store carries it.) I haven’t noticed a change, but then, the stuff doesn’t fly off the shelves here. (Or is it Marmite that I get? I can’t remember, and I’m too lazy to check my cupboard.) ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/7 "2011-02-18T04:49:22Z")
I’ve always had trouble spreading it, but the more butter I use the easier it spreads. Did you change the butter you use at all? I periodically add a few drops of hot water to the jar of Vegemite. They soak in and help it spread better. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/8 "2011-02-18T04:53:37Z")
Maybe you accidentally got a jar of the[new milder, kiddie](http://www.smh.com.au/business/media-and-marketing/taste-jars-so-kraft-bows-to-wimpy-little-vegemites-20110216-1awmv.html) version? ---
**Author:** ![TravisFromOR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cc9497/32.png) [@TravisFromOR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TravisFromOR)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/9 "2011-02-18T05:03:23Z")
> [@C3](#): > > Maybe you accidentally got a jar of the[new milder, kiddie](http://www.smh.com.au/business/media-and-marketing/taste-jars-so-kraft-bows-to-wimpy-little-vegemites-20110216-1awmv.html) version? That is the saddest thing I’ve ever heard. My heart goes out to all the Aussies here. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/10 "2011-02-18T05:46:44Z")
The thing is, getting kids to eat Vegemite simply isn’t a problem. Most kid-orientated places offer a Vegemite sandwich as an option for fussy eaters because most kids will happily eat Vegemite (in this country). Sure, less salt is a good thing, but you spread Vegemite so thinly anyway, and looking at the jars in my pantry it appears that a single serving of Peanut Butter only has about 10mg less salt than a single serving of Vegemite (8%of RDI vs. 6% of RDI). My kid would have to eat 4 servings of Vegemite to equal the amount of salt in a small can of baked beans… and Vegemite isn’t the kind of topping you’d generally eat out of the jar (pipe down, jar-licking weirdos - you know you’re an anomaly). Good luck to Kraft and all, but colour me surprised if it turns out there actually is a gap in the market that this new product fills. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/11 "2011-02-18T15:00:35Z")
Heh - my 6 year old has been eating a vegemite bagel for breakfast 4-5 days/week for the past 2 years. She loves the stuff. Except the day I was sick and my wife made it for her - no butter, and spread on about 10 times the amount I do - that was a problem. ---
**Author:** ![wheresmymind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/91b2a8/32.png) [@wheresmymind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wheresmymind)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2011, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/12 "2011-02-19T01:00:30Z")
American here, I just got a small jar of Vegemite and it was the same as it ever was. Judging by the exorbitant price I paid, it was imported from Oz, not made in the U.S. As for that Vegemite Lite concoction, I think they’re marketing it wrong. As others have said kids don’t seem to have problems developing a taste for Vegemite, it’s adults that have never been exposed to it that are really turned off. As for myself, I just started eating it in the past 5 years, and instantly loved it. Every Aussie I’ve come across has been horrified at how much I use - I slather it on like peanut butter. ---
**Author:** ![Monkey\_Chews](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@Monkey\_Chews](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monkey_Chews)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2011, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/13 "2011-02-19T07:08:45Z")
Haven’t noticed any difference. I’m also not sure what the deal is with the “kiddie-friendly” version. Since when is getting kids to eat vegemite a problem? I lived on the stuff til I was about 8. Although I guess the lower-salt aspect is good - in fact, if I could get a lower salt version that did’t affect the taster, I’d probably go for it. But I doubt that’s possible. Mmmmm… thick black salty goodness. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2011, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/14 "2011-02-19T07:10:59Z")
Moving thread from IMHO to Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2011, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/15 "2011-02-19T07:27:25Z")
Perhaps you’d have more satisfactory results with Marmite, the One True Toasted Prandial Spread? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2011, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/16 "2011-02-19T07:29:47Z")
Warm the knife. You know, hot knife, butter, cutting through. ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2011, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/17 "2011-02-20T23:13:46Z")
> [@C3](#): > > Maybe you accidentally got a jar of the[new milder, kiddie](http://www.smh.com.au/business/media-and-marketing/taste-jars-so-kraft-bows-to-wimpy-little-vegemites-20110216-1awmv.html) version? Blasphemy, are we trying to raise a bunch of soft underachievers who can’t even handle the real thing. I blame the media.:mad:😛 ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2011, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/18 "2011-02-20T23:19:16Z")
My house in the PNW is a bit cooler than my apartment in L.A. was\*. I’ve noticed I need to take care not to tear the bread when I spread my Vegemite. \*The first time I opened a can of menudo up here, the liquid was completely congealed. It was always liquid in L.A. ---
**Author:** ![Leanne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Leanne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leanne)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/19 "2016-07-13T23:07:30Z")
[http://blogs.abc.net.au/nsw/2014/03/new-vegemite-leaves-bitter-aftertaste.html](http://blogs.abc.net.au/nsw/2014/03/new-vegemite-leaves-bitter-aftertaste.html) :mad: Sadly, my family noticed the change immediately and a quick search found the sad tale at the link above. It’s still edible, still a favourite but why change? To increase profit maybe?? ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2016, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771/20 "2016-07-14T00:07:03Z")
You’ve resurrected a five year old thread with a link to a two year old article. When did you first notice the taste change, and why bring it up now? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aussie-dopers-vegemite-harder-to-spread/571771.md?page=2)