Marmite Closes M1 ...

[ahinton]

I may be wrong here, but from what I recall, "marmite" is French for reduced stock - which is what in affect Marmite is.

Mais not reduced enough, mon ami!

[Serial_Apologist]

Mais not reduced enough, mon ami!

I suppose it could be reduced further to a solid resin, then grated and scattered on the soil around hostas to keep the slugs away. However, as a Marmite devotee myself, I do have to admire a company which advertises this product by implying that the less of it consumed, the better.

[Anna]

The 'Love It, Hate It' is purely canny marketing. Launched in 1902, Marmite has been adept at adapting itself, tapping into prevailing cultural trends with impressive alacrity. Until the 1970s the brand positioned itself as a nutritious food for children, even utilising a Marmite sales force to target health professionals in a similar manner to today's pharmaceutical reps. The brand focus then shifted to Marmite as a family favourite, before embracing the memorable "My mate" tagline of the 80s. But Marmite's most genius marketing move yet may well be its most recent "Love It or Hate It" campaign, devised 15 years ago when a creative team had a difference of opinion over whether the spread was gross or great. (italics courtesy of a Guardian article)

Personally, I love it and my breakfast is usually wholewheat six seeded toast spread with Marmite. Or, even better, at the weekend boiled egg with Marmite soldiers. I draw the line however at Nigella's Marmite pasta.

[Serial_Apologist]

The 'Love It, Hate It' is purely canny marketing. Launched in 1902, Marmite has been adept at adapting itself, tapping into prevailing cultural trends with impressive alacrity. Until the 1970s the brand positioned itself as a nutritious food for children, even utilising a Marmite sales force to target health professionals in a similar manner to today's pharmaceutical reps. The brand focus then shifted to Marmite as a family favourite, before embracing the memorable "My mate" tagline of the 80s. But Marmite's most genius marketing move yet may well be its most recent "Love It or Hate It" campaign, devised 15 years ago when a creative team had a difference of opinion over whether the spread was gross or great. (italics courtesy of a Guardian article)

Personally, I love it and my breakfast is usually wholewheat six seeded toast spread with Marmite. Or, even better, at the weekend boiled egg with Marmite soldiers. I draw the line however at Nigella's Marmite pasta.

Very interesting background, thanks Anna. (And thanks vinteuil for correcting me on the marmite). My favourite also involves Marmite and wholewheat seeded bread: a fried egg sandwich - not toasted in my case.

(Ooh I'm starting to feel peckish!)

[ahinton]

I suppose it could be reduced further to a solid resin, then grated and scattered on the soil around hostas to keep the slugs away. However, as a Marmite devotee myself, I do have to admire a company which advertises this product by implying that the less of it consumed, the better.

I suppose that it could indeed, in theory, at least, though whether it could be guaranteed to have the desired effect might rmain open to question until the process had been tried and tested. The manufacturers do not, however, (at least not yet!) extend this particular implication in their advertising to include the possibility hat the less of it that's actually consumed, the more that could be made available for the use that you've suggested.

[ahinton]

Marmite soldiers

Had you not heard that large swathes of these are to be axed over the next few years as part of the government's defence spending cuts?

Relatively few foodstuffs are really utter anathema to me, but my trio of total horrors comprises marmite/vegemite, goat's cheese (yes, even Welsh goat's cheese!) and papaya, each of which I find vomit-inducing even without consuming them and the (admittedly most improbable) prospect of finding them all together on one plate is simply too disgusting to contemplate!

[Anna]

My favourite also involves Marmite and wholewheat seeded bread: a fried egg sandwich - not toasted in my case.

(Ooh I'm starting to feel peckish!)

S-A Cheddar cheese and Marmite sandwiches on wholewheat seeded (with butter not some awful spread) taken on a picnic with hard boiled eggs, and you've eaten them in the car before you even get where you're going! Also, you really feel Marmite is so good for you, B-Vitamins and all that. You never meet a stressed Marmite eater.

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

It was in 1902 that the Marmite Food Company (later Marmite Ltd) was set up in Burton on Trent.

i think that Burton on Trent is in England, and though the process has a German discoverer, the product is born and bred in England; ...the etymology of the name suggests a hypocrisy in masking the contents in a lidded pot .... i see no problem in subsuming such an idea to an English cause ....

[aka Calum Da Jazbo]

dissolved in hot water it makes an excellent [very salty] gargle for a sore throat as well as a pleasant/loathsome drink

[Serial_Apologist]

i think that Burton on Trent is in England, and though the process has a German discoverer, the product is born and bred in England; ...the etymology of the name suggests a hypocrisy in masking the contents in a lidded pot .... i see no problem in subsuming such an idea to an English cause ....

Nor me Calum.

[Segilla]

... then grated and scattered on the soil around hostas to keep the slugs away. .

Do you really want to kill your hostas?! The disgusting amount of salt in Marmite means it would be better kept until the roads are iced up.

[ahinton]

S-A Cheddar cheese and Marmite sandwiches on wholewheat seeded (with butter not some awful spread) taken on a picnic with hard boiled eggs, and you've eaten them in the car before you even get where you're going! Also, you really feel Marmite is so good for you, B-Vitamins and all that. You never meet a stressed Marmite eater.

Bowing as I must to your superior experience levels here, I'll take your word for this but, in so doing, I could quite easily get stressed at the mere thought of consuming Marmite! Nah - given some fine Welsh cow's or sheep's cheese and fine French bread (even if baked in Wales!) with fine unsalted organic French butter, who on earth would want to ruin it all with Marmite?!

[ahinton]

Do you really want to kill your hostas?! The disgusting amount of salt in Marmite means it would be better kept until the roads are iced up.

But I think that we're now dangerously close to coming full circle here; haven't we already agreed that accidentally or purposely spreading Marmite on the roads (iced or otherwise) is not a good thing for traffic?!

[ahinton]

dissolved in hot water it makes an excellent [very salty] gargle for a sore throat as well as a pleasant/loathsome drink

Dissolved in hot water (though I wonder what poor unsuspecting water might ever have done to deserve such a fate?) it's a whole lot easier to pour down the sink.

[Frances_iom]

i think that Burton on Trent is in England, .

Burton on Trent is a major producer of Beer - marmite is just the dregs left over of the dead yeast whose taste is hidden by a totally unhealthy amount of salt - quite why it is thought good for kids defeats me.