Daily BrewHoard your Ovaltine, Marmite: CFIA bans Canadian sales of some British food products
I thought there were only two camps when it came to Marmite: Either you enjoy the British yeast-extract spread as a savoury treat on toast or you think it's a vile-smelling disgusting black goo in a jar.
I'm on Team Marmite, having spent my early years in London. But most of my friends wrinkle their faces at it, as if they'd stepped in something nasty.
Now it turns out there's a third view: It's illegal.
Marmite, a byproduct of beer brewing that's been around for more than a century, has joined a list of popular British products the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) says should not be sold in Canadian stores, according to The Canadian Press.
The list apparently includes Ovaltine, a caffinated Scottish soda pop called Irn-Bru and Bovril, a beef concentrate used to make a hot drink or in recipes since the days of the Empire.
The news came as a surprise to Tony Badger, who runs Saskatoon-bsased Brit Foods, a small chain of stores specializing in popular British goodies.
Badger got a letter from the CFIA notifying him that the products contained some ingredients that were illegal. He can't understand the problem, noting that Marmite, Ovaltine and Bovril are widely available in major supermarkets across Canada.
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The letter said Marmite, Ovaltine, Lucozade (a sports drink), Penguin Bars and Bovril "are enriched with vitamins and minerals," which apparently makes them illegal. Other products, such as canned soup and stock, had too high levels of animal products.
Irn-Bru crossed the line by using a red food colouring not on the CFIA's list of approved additives because it's been linked to hyperactivity in children.
“We’ve been bringing Irn-Bru in since the very beginning,” Badger said. “My understanding was we were importing legally. We’ve been declaring it through a customs broker and we’ve never had an issue until now.”
The trouble started last October when Badger's Christmas order was held up. Requests for information produced an explanation that the CFIA considered some products didn't meet Canadian standards.
Badger said he had to abandon the seized products to get the rest of the shipment released in time for the Christmas-sales period.
“The concern now is, with the next shipment, if it gets held there may be new issues with new products, so it somewhat paralyses our ability to bring new product in,” he said, adding the uncertainty is harming his business, which includes stores in Edmonton and Parksville, on Vancouver Island.
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"Unfortunately, as time goes by, I'm not importing," he told the Saskatoon StarPhoenix. "As the shelves start to empty ... if it takes too long we'll have no option but to close."
Badger said the only good news is that the agency is conducting health-risk assessments to see whether the products are fit to be sold in Canada.
The story has made it across the pond and into British media, including BBC News. It quoted British ex-pat Nigel Westwick, who told the StarPhoenix he couldn't understand "the insanity" of barring Irn-Bru.
"For a country that allows one to buy firearms, guns, bullets ... stopping a soft drink suitable for all ages seems a little ludicrous," he said.
