The Guardian 15 February, 2006
Vegemite goes off shore
The exodus of manufacturing jobs from Australia has spread to food, with Aussie icon
Vegemite to soon display a "Made in China" label. Vegemite manufacturer, Kraft, will sack
151 workers at its Broadmeadows plant in Victoria, moving the jobs to Asia.
The workers are the latest victims of Howard government policy, which sees 1,178 manufacturing
jobs disappear each week. The Broadmeadows plant has manufactured brands such as Captain's
Table crackers, Premium crisp bread and In A Biskit for over 40 years.
"Thirty years on this job and now my job has gone to China", said one worker upon hearing the
news.
Kraft, owned by US-owned tobacco and food giant Altria, warned of an "ongoing company-wide
review" of its Australian operations, including the Port Melbourne factory that makes Vegemite and
peanut butter.
The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) has slammed the lack of consultation over
the decision, calling for workers to be compensated.
"They told us they were taking the product to China", said AMWU organiser Tony Mavromatis.
"Already 20,000 Victorian manufacturing jobs have disappeared in the last year alone.
"Who will be next?
"The Federal Government has announced that WorkChoices will create jobs, but where are these
jobs going to be?"
The situation at the Kraft plant in Port Melbourne continues to be monitored.
In the absence of Commonwealth action, unions, industry groups and state governments will form
a policy this year in an attempt to stem the flow of manufacturing overseas.