Australia Day is next week on the 26th. And as fate would have it, an auspicious news item appeared in the NYT yesterday – Vegemite is coming back home – after over 60 years of being owned by an American company the vegemite brand is being bought by an Australian company. You beaut!!
As I am sure most readers of this blog will know, my wife Carolyn, who is now an American citizen by the way, was originally from Australia. And one thing she made sure she brought with her on the plane from Tullamarine was a rather large supply of Vegemite. I can only speak as a Northern Hemisphere native but I have to say I really don’t care for vegemite that much. The flavor is too strong for me. It is I believe an acquired taste. Carolyn of course grew up with it and she still eats it on occasion – especially if she feels homesick or is in a blue mood. For her, as well as a lot of Australians, I imagine it is a comfort food. Our children started eating it at an early age – in fact I think it was one of the first solid foods that they ate. Their lunches when they were toddlers often times consisted of toast with a thin spread of that dark yeast extract.
So I am happy to read that this Aussie icon is now back in the hands of the people who love it so much. Welcome home Vegemite!
Now if only Blundstones could return to being made in Australia as well!
