Australia, New Zealand & the South Pacific - A vegemite ban? Say it isn't so..

Even packing Vegemite in a checked bag rather than in a carry-on may not be enough to get it into the US now..

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,20620744-953,00.html

"The bizarre crackdown was prompted because Vegemite contains folate, which in the US can be added only to breads and cereals.
Expatriates say that enforcement of the ban has been stepped up recently and is ruining lifelong traditions of having Vegemite on toast for breakfast."

:mad:

I'd assume this would apply to Marmite as well (either the Australian or British versions)..

fly into ord, they have nonexistant customs

fly into ord, they have nonexistant customs

There are no flights from Australia to ORD. Currently only HNL, LAX and SFO have direct service to Australia (plus JFK but clear immigration and customs at LAX for that flight).

Just as well I keep a jar in the USA. :)

I hope the about australia shop will still stock it for when mine runs out.


Phoebe

There are no flights from Australia to ORD. Currently only HNL, LAX and SFO have direct service to Australia (plus JFK but clear immigration and customs at LAX for that flight).

Well UA has had SYD-ORD as UA 870 daily for about 10 years. ;)

But yes, same flight number right thru, but you make a stop in SFO.

And yes, UA has flight 840 that is SYD-JFK. In fact 840 is actually a daily MEL-JFK but with 2 stops. :D

Saw this as a news item last night.

RIDICULOUS.

Given the nasty toxic c*ap openly sold as children's spreads in all USA supermarkets. :mad:

I wonder just how much they'll bother to enforce the ban at SFO and LAX? (One would hope that customs would have a little more of a grip on their priorities than the TSA seems to. Yeah, right.)

I've not even bothered to mention it sometimes in the list of food items I've been carrying in, believing it was okay. I suppose I can always plead ignorance next time. (It's not like it's an agricultural threat, nor are Americans likely to develop a harmful addiction to the substance - so the corn syrup cartels needn't feel threatened by folate.)

In any case, I have a decent enough stash at the moment.

Anyone have any recent confiscation reports?

I find it difficult to believe that anybody would be upset over not having unfettered access to that foul-tasting stuff. :p

It probably should have been banned long ago just for the way it tastes. :)

Austrade know nothing of this rumor

I find it difficult to believe that anybody would be upset over not having unfettered access to that foul-tasting stuff. :p

It probably should have been banned long ago just for the way it tastes. :)

Thats considered sacrilege on this forum please leave immediatley :D

Thats considered sacrilege on this forum please leave immediatley :DIf this is where they keep and eat that stuff, I'm outta here for good. :p

As discussed here:
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20636429-1702,00.html

This seems to be a mystery ban not based on fact but rather one customs official's interpretation of the law.

I wouldn't be suprised to see this "non ban" withdrawn within a couple of days.

A few select quotes from the article above:
"
Supermarkets in the US continue to stock Vegemite and say they have no plans to remove Australia's iconic savoury spread from their shelves.
"

""We are aware of reports that US authorities have been seeking to stop people from bringing Vegemite into the country," a spokesperson from the Australian embassy in Washington DC said.

"From our perspective there is no food safety issue with Vegemite and we had been advised recently by US authorities that Vegemite was not of concern to them.

"We are liaising with US authorities to determine whether the media reports are accurate."
"

I find it difficult to believe that anybody would be upset over not having unfettered access to that foul-tasting stuff. :p

It probably should have been banned long ago just for the way it tastes. :)

Please forgive him folks - Nu Yoiker, so please extend the usual tolerance. ;)

I saw this man sit down and order a bowl of chocolate SOUP in Tel Aviv last November.

A bloody huge bowl of thick runny CHOCOLATE SOUP and he talks to us about Vegemite? :cool:

A bloody huge bowl of thick runny CHOCOLATE SOUP and he talks to us about Vegemite?

Please at least tell us that it wasn't Hershey's chocolate. ;)

The report cited by Aus_Mal seems to make sense.
And I don't suppose I can see customs staff at busy airports easily enforcing such an obscure ban without having to make it a very awkward priority, such as specifically asking everyone traveling under an Australian passport if they're carrying any! (And then what would they do about dual citizens who may be supporting a Vegemite addiction yet are entering the country under a US passport?)

I also read somewhere (and wouldn't you know it now I can't find the link) that implied that the FDA 'technicality' had been in place for some time, and was responsible for the fact that the only tiny (4 oz / 115g) sized jars or Vegemite, Marmite or similar were available in many of the places that sell them over here. Still, I'd always assumed that only the small sizes would sell because most Americans have the same reaction to the stuff that monitor displayed. :D

Another reason why not to transit through the big shot USA.

How bloody stupid can people be. :confused:

Vegemite is the perfect product for a keister stash, since the taste wouldn't be effected at all!

BTW, I heard that only product imported and re-sold with Aussie labels was prohibited... Labels on product sold in the USA have to have labels consistent with US food labeling laws. Same with any other food products imported into the US for sale.

Ah yes, which often just results in a new label stuck on the original package. Incidentally, in the case of Tim Tams - at least as sold by World Market, the product's been repackaged as "Arnott's Original Chocolate Biscuits" (and still with an additional label stuck to it!). I have no clue why.

So, ban or no ban, I suppose we should be glad that Vegemite hasn't been completely rebranded as "Kraft's Original Yeast Extract Spread".

Ah yes, which often just results in a new label stuck on the original package. Incidentally, in the case of Tim Tams - at least as sold by World Market, the product's been repackaged as "Arnott's Original Chocolate Biscuits" (and still with an additional label stuck to it!). I have no clue why.



Wikipedia has some info on Tim-Tams... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Tam