Without Beer there is no Marmite
99% by-product, 1% magic
There’s a new one for you (probably). That’s right – Marmite shares a rich, mutually beneficial history with British beer. Where shall we start? Ah yes… With yeast. Where else.
The beer brewing process causes fermentation; brewer’s yeast multiplies and creates a large surplus. For a long time, brewers were stumped just what to do with it all, other than throw it out.
Enter a very clever bloke by the name of Justus Liebig who discovered that putting brewer’s yeast through some self-digestion here, and a bit of concentration and evaporation there, leaves you with a delicious (or disgusting) by-product of the brewing industry. And so began the making of Marmite in the 1900’s; our production methods have changed very little ever since.
Trust the process
STEP ONE
Pick up yeast from breweries across the UK and bring it to our factory in Burton-on-Trent
STEP TWO
Mix and heat the yeast to produce a protein-rich soup. Probably not delicious at this point.
STEP 3
Separate out the yeast cell skins from their contents, so we’re left with all the protein-y goodness. Still not delicious. But those yeast ‘skins’ aren’t just tossed aside – no sir.
In the spirit of sustainability – what sits at the heart of the Marmite-beer relationship – we turn the yeast ‘skins’ into highly enjoyable feed for pigs.
STEP FOUR
Remove water by evaporation, to turn the yeast into thick paste: yeast extract. Getting more delicious. Meanwhile, elsewhere, that evaporated water is turned into biogas that we use to provide steam used in future production cycles.
STEP FIVE
Blend top-secret ingredients in, and then watch it, and taste it – and watch it, and taste it some more – for a few weeks, to make sure it becomes the Marmite you know. Peak deliciousness.
STEP SIX
Finally, pour the black gold into its iconic jars and send the stuff out to divide the nation.
The Journey of Marmite
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