Vegemite | Chewsday Review

Vegemite! The classic salty spread you can find in most Aussie homes, but does it butter up to my expectations?

Ingredients

Yeast extract (from yeast grown on barley and wheat), salt, mineral salt (508), malt extract (from barley), colour (150c), flavours, niacin, thiamine, riboflavin, folate.
Salt and mineral salt are high in the ingredients list, so I expect a high sodium content here.
It’s good to see some added B vitamins in this spread (thiamine, riboflavin and niacin) and also some folate.
Allergens: Gluten, wheat.

Positives

The total fat and saturated fat are well within our guidelines, both coming in at less than 1g per 100g. To compare it with another common spread, Bega Peanut Butter (with added oils) contains 51.5g per 100g of total fat and 10.3g per 100g of saturated fat.
There is no added sugar in Vegemite, so I’m not surprised to see it come in under our guidelines at 2.4g per 100g.
When looking at the added vitamins, a serve of Vegemite offers roughly a full serve of a toddler’s daily requirement for vitamins B1 and B2, almost 50% of B3, and 66% of folate. For a school-aged child, this equates to almost a full daily requirement of vitamin B1, 76% of B2, 30% of B3, and 50% of folate.

Negatives

The sodium content of Vegemite comes in at a whopping 3300mg/100g. This isn’t surprising at all considering the salty taste! Although this is huge, you’d struggle to find someone that would eat 100g of Vegemite at once! One serve provides 165mg of sodium. This is about 55% of a toddler’s suggested daily sodium intake and 37% of a school-aged child’s. The 40% Less Salt Vegemite contains 99mg per serve. Remember that a serving of Vegemite has a similar amount of sodium as a serve bread or some cereals.
Vegemite’s fibre is much lower than our target, but considering Vegemite is most commonly eaten on toast or in a sandwich, choosing a bread with at least 3g of fibre per serve will bump this meal up to meet our fibre guidelines.

Marketing

‘B Vitamins for Vitality’ – Correct. B vitamins help your body to use nutrients for energy, and brain function and support a healthy nervous system.
‘Monash University Low Fodmap Certified’ – True. Vegemite has been assessed and meets the Monash University Low Fodmap Certification requirements.
‘Vegan Australia Certified’ – Yep! This paid certification involves providing manufacturing documentation, which Vegan Australia then assesses and confirms.

Alternatives

This widely-loved spread is a staple in most Australian houses. Overall, opting for the 40% Less Salt Vegemite offers the same taste (it’s been blind taste tested!) with a lower sodium content.
I wouldn’t recommend offering any Vegemite to your child if they are under 1 year old. After 12 months old, their bodies can reliably handle a little bit more salt. So if Vegemite is something your family enjoys, you could more confidently offer it as your little one enters toddlerhood.

The composition of food products changes regularly. The nutritional values of the products in this Chewsday Review were correct at the time of publishing.