Is it time to rethink our love affair with Vegemite?

It’s our most popular and patriotic foodstuff. And since it was first made in 1923, using brewers-yeast from the equally iconic VB, it has been marketed as health food.

The humble spread, one 1945 advert claimed, helped to keep our brave soldiers alive. It is also, according to a 1962 advertisement, nature’s richest source of precious “B” group vitamins, giving us what we need for healthy nerves, firm body tissue, and good digestion. Oh and, of course, it puts a rose in every cheek.

Vegemite may be our favourite spread but it is not a health spread.Credit: Michele Mossop

No wonder about 90 per cent of Australian households have a jar in the cupboard, and we spend more than $70 million on it each year.

Its marketing as both a health food and an essential part of the Australian identity has been so successful that even those of us who typically avoid ultra-processed foods often make an exception for Vegemite. It’s un-Australian not to.

So, it was a plate of poutine in the face when Canada’s food authority ordered an Australian cafe owner to stop serving Vegemite because it was non-compliant with its health regulations.

The issue was the vitamin B fortification, the very thing we have been told makes the product healthy.

Yet, the Canadian food authority did not share the same perspective, limiting the addition of vitamins to help protect its people from “excessive amounts of certain nutrients in their diet”.

Though a subsequent health risk assessment determined Vegemite was low risk, it begs the question: are the Bs added excessive and do we need to rethink Vegemite as a ‘health’ food?

The eight B vitamins - thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine, biotin, folic acid, and cobalamin – are essential nutrients that support brain function, our nervous system, support energy release and help to fight fatigue.

Most Australians meet their vitamin B requirements and while excess vitamin B issues are rare, it can cause skin flushing, liver damage, diarrhoea and, in the case of vitamin B6, neurotoxicity.

“Recent negative stories about B vitamins have related to vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) intake through supplements and the risk of peripheral neuropathy,” says Jemma O’Hanlon, an advanced accredited practising dietitian. “Vegemite doesn’t contain any added vitamin B6.”

Still, O’Hanlon adds, about a teaspoon (5g) of Vegemite provides half an adult’s daily intake of thiamine (B1) and folate (B9), and a quarter of riboflavin (B2) and niacin (B3).

“Very thinly spread, a teaspoon of Vegemite barely covers a regular slice of bread, so chances are, many of us may be consuming more than that,” she says.

Compared to the “mega dosing of nutrients” often found in vitamin and mineral supplementation, this isn’t an issue, says accredited practising dietitian Susie Burrell:

“The way the Vegemite is consumed in general – in small amounts as a spread once a day – is no cause for concern nutritionally, especially when compared to sugary spreads like jam, or a true ultra-processed foods like Nutella which has a base of sugar and vegetable oil.”

But to suggest Vegemite is healthy is a stretch.

Ultra-processed foods are industrially formulated products with additives we wouldn’t find in our kitchens, such as the colour (150c), flavours and mineral salts found in Vegemite.

“The fortification of B vitamins certainly improves the nutritional value, but it also is a health halo,” says O’Hanlon.

Two slices of bread spread with one teaspoon of Vegemite per slice provides almost one-third of our daily sodium limit.

She suggests opting for the salt-reduced version, and thinking about the bread we spread it on (opt for sourdough, wholemeal or wholegrain).

“I would suggest that it’s a food for sometimes rather than every day,” says O’Hanlon. “Instead of always having Vegemite, try smashed avocado which provides B vitamins and has no added salt. Peanut or other nut butters with no added salt are also a good choice and will keep you fuller for longer.”

Though it may not live up to the marketing hype, Vegemite or not, there are bigger issues in the diets of Australians, says dietitian and chief health officer of HealthyLife, Simone Austin.

Their new Living Healthy Report shows that 94 per cent of Australian adults are not eating the recommended five veggie serves per day.

“We’re only purchasing for example 2.8 servings of veggies rather than the recommended five,” Austin says. Addressing this is the best way to ensure we meet our vitamin B and other nutrient needs.

“It is not one food in your diet alone that matters, it is the variety of your overall diet that counts for good health.”

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