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-Short Attention Span Theater-
America bans Vegemite
2006-10-22
THE US has banned Vegemite, even to the point of searching Australians for jars of the spread when they enter the country. The bizarre crackdown was prompted because Vegemite has been deemed illegal under US food laws.
We were getting along so well, and then suddenly — this!
The great Aussie icon -- faithfully carried around the world by travellers from Down Under -- contains folate, which under a technicality, America only allows to be added to breads and cereals. Australian expatriates in the US said enforcement of the ban had been gradually stepped up and was now ruining lifelong traditions of Vegemite on toast for breakfast. Kraft spokeswoman Joanna Scott said: ``The (US) Food and Drug Administration doesn't allow the import of Vegemite simply because the recipe does have the addition of folic acid.'' The US was "a minor market'' for Vegemite, she said.
This is asinine. Just asinine.
Posted by:Fred

#23  Brussel Sprouts
Posted by: Bright Pebbles in Blairistan   2006-10-22 21:55  

#22  Vegemite should be banned! I mean, have you ever tasted it? Banned along with Marmite, Haggis, and Broccoli

I'm not sure what marmite might be, but I like haggis, broccoli, spinach, liver, those little green cabbage thingies whose name I can't recall right now, beets (non-stewed, cooked w/butter), and more than a few other things that most of us would never have touched as a kid.

Posted by: FOTSGreg   2006-10-22 19:54  

#21  I remember when they banned shipments of haggis just before a Robert Burns observance. The shouting and bagpipe bleatingÂ…

Yeah, but that was in celebration!
Posted by: Almost Anonymous5839   2006-10-22 18:27  

#20  I remember when they banned shipments of haggis just before a Robert Burns observance. The shouting and bagpipe bleating…
Posted by: Eric Jablow   2006-10-22 17:03  

#19  Our tax dollars at work. Someone has a marked lack of perspective here.
Posted by: SR-71   2006-10-22 16:50  

#18  "The (US) Food and Drug Administration doesn't allow the import of Vegemite simply because the recipe does have the addition of folic acid."

I don't buy that - folic acid is added to foods here, too. Must be something else.

Not that I would eat it anyway, but the FDA banning such a product is beyond STUPID. (What a shocker.)
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut   2006-10-22 13:07  

#17  #15 -- Maybe because you can buy raw nuts and roast them yourself, easily enough???
Posted by: nutty idea   2006-10-22 12:55  

#16  When Vegemite is outlawed, only outlaws will have Vegemite.
Posted by: Baba Tutu   2006-10-22 12:47  

#15  This is the same FDA that seems to encourage nut companies to roast their nuts in PEANUT OIL even though millions are ALLERGIC to peanuts (esp Carters). Why deny nuts to millions for PLANTER's and Jimmie C's benefit?


Posted by: 3dc   2006-10-22 12:40  

#14  Mebbe it's cuz it doesn't have a child-proof lid.
Posted by: .com   2006-10-22 11:37  

#13  But you know, Kraft who make Vegemite are a US company so it is really, really silly as it's not Australian at all anymore. Aussies just like eating it.

Yes, Kraft is an American company. Vegemite is not an American product, it is made in Australia. Multi-National Corporations routinely produce products that are local in focus, and that is the case with Vegemite.

I draw your attention to the photo of the jar, notice that it says: "Product of Australia".

Posted by: NoBeards   2006-10-22 11:31  

#12  Time for a letter writing campaign, folks. Get the FDA to back off.
Posted by: lotp   2006-10-22 11:29  

#11  I tried Vegemite and I din't like it, but this whole thing is silly and a slap in the face to our very good friends. U.S. food regulations should allow comity for products from allies like Australia.

If the Australians had banned American peanut butter, we'd think they had gone bonkers.
Posted by: Darrell   2006-10-22 11:22  

#10  This is typical of the FDA bureaucracy, mindlessly enforcing the most trivial of laws while they should worried about dangerous things. One might think, with the current state of the world, that they would have better things to do with their time and resources than rifle though Aussie's bags for Vegemite.
Posted by: bigjim-ky   2006-10-22 11:14  

#9  Vegemite: Spam's inner animal
Posted by: Hyper   2006-10-22 09:22  

#8  How is is Vegemite banned but Spam legal?

Inquiring minds?
Posted by: Dunno   2006-10-22 04:58  

#7  There's always Bovril and Marmite.
Posted by: Zhang Fei   2006-10-22 04:43  

#6  Presumably Marmits' banned too? This could have a huge effect on Anglophone travel to the US.
Posted by: Bulldog   2006-10-22 02:12  

#5  This is how we treat one of our finest allies. We ought to be ashamed. Our politicians are a national disgrace.
Posted by: Zenster   2006-10-22 01:20  

#4  I love it on toast with butter, i'm going to eat some right now in protest.

But you know, Kraft who make Vegemite are a US company so it is really, really silly as it's not Australian at all anymore. Aussies just like eating it.
Posted by: anon1   2006-10-22 01:16  

#3  Folate is a water-soluble B vitamin that occurs naturally in food. Folic acid is the synthetic form of folate that is found in supplements and added to fortified foods [1].


C19H19N7O6







Posted by: RD   2006-10-22 00:42  

#2  Vegemite should be banned! I mean, have you ever tasted it? Banned along with Marmite, Haggis, and Broccoli
Posted by: DMFD   2006-10-22 00:41  

#1  Well, than the big government types - on both sides of the aisle - that crap liek this happens.
Posted by: Oldspook   2006-10-22 00:23  

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