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Comment by madeofpalk | Hacker News Reader

Moving from Australia to UK, i was amused (and disgusted) by the difference between Marmite in both the countries.

In Australia, Marmite has the same non-runny consistency as Vegemite, and tastes roughly the same but just more mild. Coming to the UK I was really weirded out by the runny, gloopy, tar-like consistency of Marmite. The taste is also quite different.

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The pot pictured in the article has similar branding to the UK product - so South Africa is UK-aligned on this rather than Aus/NZ-aligned (or independent)?

Being from the UK I'm fondest of the home version, and especially for its unhelpfully runny texture. Vegemite is pretty nice but the stuff called Marmite that I met in New Zealand, which I guess would be the same as your Australian one, is a bit weak next to either of the others.

Kiwi Marmite is a bit more sugary than UK Marmite from what I remember. It's not bad, but it doesn't quite scratch the itch. We had all three variants in Antarctica, having deployed via New Zealand and with a couple of Brits and an Aussie on station. There was a taste-off for the Americans (99% of the station population) and I think the Kiwi Marmite won, much to my disappointment. I did convert at least one person to British Marmite.

On a recent trip back home, I was very happy to find that Marmite XO still exists and is sold in my parents' local Tesco.

What an excellent test case. Perhaps the Kiwi Marmite has a suitable function as "beginner's Marmite".

I was and remain delighted that Marmite XO went from limited run to regularly available.

Antarctica? Care to develop?

I worked at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station for a year, looking after IceCube (big neutrino observatory). It's a US base, but science staff tend to be more multi-national as universities have much more freedom on who they can hire. One of our summer area managers (who was also British) brought a huge tub of UK Marmite which lasted most of the year, though it dried out pretty badly and would require melting in the microwave.

The SA branding looks almost identical to the UK branding. But the product is subtly different. The UK has a consistency and appearance of thick black treacle (molasses). The SA one is less runny with a more satin appearance. They taste pretty much the same, though.

> South Africa is UK-aligned on this rather than Aus/NZ-aligned (or independent)?

SA is more-or-less UK aligned in Marmite, and in many other things.

The issue is that in Aus/NZ, the other product Vegemite is even more popular, and is IMHO milder and sweeter. Vegemite is not that well known in SA.

I was raised on NZ marmite and love the stuff.

However, it's easier to find the UK stuff worldwide. I only recently tried the UK stuff. I agree that the NZ one is much weaker in comparison.

I wanted to ask what the difference between Marmite and Vegemite was, but apparently the difference between Marmites of different countries is larger than the difference between Marmite and Vegemite?

As an uncultured American who just likes buying from import shops:

Similar flavor, but Vegemite is milder. UK Marmite has the consistency of molasses, perhaps a bit thicker. Vegemite has the consistency of (homogenized, not natural) peanut butter, and is consequently easier to spread.

Also uncultured American, and agreed 100%.

I actually love vegemite in very small quantities, like really thin and not even fully covering toast.

Marmite is a mess and the consistency/flavor I find rather offputting.

South African here, our Marmite is more liquid than paste, so probably in line with UK Marmite.

UK Marmite wasn't runny when I was a child.

Probably depends on the temperature it's stored at. It's definitely runnier on warmer days.

There’s two types of UK Marmite, the standard thick spreadable version and the squeezable version.

I've only seen UK Marmite a few times, and I would describe it as having a tar-like consistency, more viscous than honey, but would still 'pour' off a knife. Vegemite is more 'solid' (but still spreadable), like peanut butter or non-melted butter.

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