Is Vegemite 40% less salt ultra-processed?

235g Yeast extract spreads Sold in Australia, New Zealand and Germany

Pack of Vegemite 40% less salt

Yes, it's ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

  • 23 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed yeast extract spreads

Less processed isn't automatically healthier, so compare the labels for what matters to you, such as sugar or salt.

Ingredients

Ultra-processing Processing signs are highlighted

yeast extract (from yeast grown on barley, wheat), mineral (salt (processing marker) (508)), humectant (ultra-processing marker) (422), malt extract (from barley), salt (processing marker), colour (ultra-processing marker) (150c), flavours (ultra-processing marker), niacin, thiamine, riboflavin, vitamins, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin b12, _barley carbohidrate, wheat carbohidrate

Additives: E150c Ammonia caramel , E422 Glycerol , E508 Potassium chloride

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: E150c Ammonia caramel, E422 Glycerol.

As written on the pack

YEAST EXTRACT (FROM YEAST GROWN ON BARLEY AND WHEAT), MINERAL SALT (508), HUMECTANT (422), MALT EXTRACT (FROM BARLEY), SALT, COLOUR (150c), FLAVOURS, NIACIN, THIAMINE, RIBOFLAVIN, VITAMIN B6, FOLATE, VITAMIN B12. _BARLEY CARBOHIDRATE, WHEAT CARBOHIDRATE

What makes it ultra-processed

Cosmetic additives

Added to change how the food looks, feels or tastes, not to keep it safe. A hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • E150c Ammonia caramel Ammonia caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars with ammonia compounds.
  • E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
  • Humectant Humectants are substances which prevent foods from drying out by counteracting the effect of an atmosphere having a low degree of humidity, or promote the dissolution of a powder in an aqueous medium.
1 ingredient that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 23 yeast extract spreads

From least to most processed, this one ranks 22nd. 57% of the yeast extract spreads here are ultra-processed.

Ranked by NOVA group, then by the number of ultra-processing signs, additives and ingredients. Our ordering, not part of NOVA.

All 23 yeast extract spreads, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 9352042002773, last edited 26 March 2026), available under the Open Database License. If something is wrong or the recipe has changed, you can correct it there.
  • Photo: Open Food Facts contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0.
  • The NOVA group is an automated estimate from crowdsourced data: a missing or mistyped ingredient can change it.
  • NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of C (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.