People are learning how Marmite is made and it’s freaking them out

Love it or hate it, Marmite is a British staple – we eat it by the bucket load, or rather 25 million jars-a-year-load. 

And whether it’s on toast, in a cheese sandwich, or mixed into stews, if you’re a fan of the stuff there isn’t much that can’t be made better by adding a spoonful.

But have you ever considered how it’s made? A resurfaced video showing the process behind making the spread has left people seriously divided.

In Channel 4’s ‘Food Unwrapped,’ presenter Kate Quilton, 39, travelled to a factory to see first hand how Marmite and other yeast extracts are made.

Located in Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire the business has been making the black stuff since 1902, and Kate went behind the scenes to chat to the official ‘Marmite Makers’.

Speaking to Sinjin Skelton, a quality specialist at the factory, he explained how the yeast extract is created.

He said: ‘When breweries make beer, they take a sugary solution and they’ll add yeast to it, and the yeast will convert the sugar into alcohol.’

Explaining the science behind it all, Kate revealed that as the yeast cells multiply they produce alcohol, and as a result, breweries end up with as much as seven times more yeast than it started with.

It is then sold to factories to make yeast extract and pumped into large vats.

The giant tubs, or coppers as they are officially called, are heated to 95 degrees which kills the live yeast and breaks down their cell walls.

‘What’s happening there is we adjust the temperature so the yeast starts to decay,’ says Sinjin.

Kate explains the ‘yeasty soup’ is then separated using a centrifuge into two liquids, leaving the broken down cell walls and the cell guts.

Upon realising that Marmite is actually the innards of an alcohol by-product, viewers were left horrified.

Channel 4’s Kate Quilton went behind the scenes at a factory that has been making Marmite for over 100 years to find out exactly what goes into the famous spread

Viewers of the show had mixed reactions to finding out exactly what went into Marmite and learning how it was made

‘Oh gosh I can’t eat this anymore. but my childhood tho ,’ wrote one former fan. 

‘Marmite is people! It’s people!!’ exclaimed a second person, exaggerating wildly.

A a third viewer wrote: ‘Wasn’t expecting his answer (sort of). I Expected him to say that but come back and say no just kidding or something.’

Another viewer added: ‘So basically it’s dehydrated yeast guts mixed with vegetable stock.’

While someone else noted: ‘Toast, Marmite and Beer. Yeasty way to start the day.’

After explaining how Marmite begins, Sinjin then revealed they add six secret ingredients.

Kate shared: ‘According to the label, it contains barley, salt, vegetable juicy concentrate juice and celery – but whatever it is, it’s blended with the yeast extract and fills 25 million jars a year.’