They may be the strongest of allies, but U.S. President Barack Obama and Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard disagree on at least one thing: the culinary strengths and weaknesses of Vegemite.
The president, it turns out, is not a fan.
“It’s horrible,” Obama told a class of high school students on Monday after one asked the visiting Australian leader what the substance really was.
Gillard acknowledged the conflict.
“This is also a little bit of a division between the President and I. I love Vegemite,” she told the student.
“It’s actually a byproduct of making beer, apparently. That’s how the story goes. It’s a yeast paste. I’m making this sound really good, aren’t I?”
Obama, trying to get the kids on his side, made clear he wasn’t convinced.
“So it’s like a quasi-vegetable-byproduct paste that you smear on your toast for breakfast. Sounds good, doesn’t it?” he said to laughter.
