Australia: Vegemite is 'gateway to misery' – but will not be banned
Government decides against plan to limit sales of yeast spread after claims it is used to brew moonshine

The Australian government has decided not to introduce a control on sales of Vegemite, which would have limited the amount of the yeast extract spread an individual could buy at one time because it is being used to produce illicit alcohol.
Vegemite, Australia's answer to Marmite, is being bought in bulk to brew moonshine in remote indigenous communities, where it has become a "precursor to misery" according to Indigenous Affairs minister Nigel Scullion.
Time magazine says Scullion suggested sales should be limited, claiming children were failing to go to school because they had hangovers and that the ale produced was a factor in domestic violence cases.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Now though, Scullion's prime minister has over-ruled him, says the BBC. Tony Abbott said yesterday that Vegemite was "reasonably nutritious" and he would not control it because "this is a deregulatory government".
Abbott added: "The last thing I want to do is have a Vegemite watch."
The salty brown spread is manufactured from a by-product of the brewing process and the story goes that brewer's yeast can be extracted from it and used to make alcohol. However, The Guardian today pours cold water on that notion.
"Few in the Northern Territory, where there are 19 communities that restrict alcohol, have been able to confirm any knowledge of the practice," says the paper. It goes on to quote one former teacher as saying homebrew is being made with orange juice poured through nappies.
Dr John Boffa of the People's Alcohol Action Coalition, who is based in the remote town of Alice Springs, told the BBC the problem of illicit alcohol was not widespread, however it is brewed.
He said: "We're talking about an isolated problem in a couple of communities around a very large nation, and a nation where there is a very large number of Aboriginal communities, and every community is different."
Alwyn Lyall, the chairman of Western Yalanji Aboriginal corporation told The Guardian: "It really got up my nose when this got out. I'm wondering, who's telling these people this sort of garbage?
"It's alright for [the federal government] to make sly remarks about the [indigenous] community and sly grogging but what it really comes back to is meaningful employment in our community."
Vegemite is known to many Brits for from Men At Work's 1981 song Down Under, and the line: "I said, 'Do you speak my language?' / He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
UK-India trade deal: how the social security arrangements will work
The Explainer A National Insurance exemption in the UK-India trade deal is causing concern but should British workers worry?
-
Man arrested after 'suspicious' fires at properties linked to Keir Starmer
Speed Read Prime minister thanks emergency services after fire at his former family home in north London
-
Elon Musk's SpaceX has created a new city in Texas
under the radar Starbase is home to SpaceX's rocket launch site
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designation
The Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
-
Data blunders put Japan's after-work boozing culture in the spotlight
Under The Radar Excessive alcohol consumption and an analogue work culture combine to create a recipe for disaster when it comes to sensitive files