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Vegemite - Source: ONE News -
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The funky name given to a new Vegemite product is toast.
Just four days after Kraft announced the new, cream cheese version
of the iconic brand would be called iSnack2.0, the company has
announced it will scrap the high-tech name because consumers didn't
like it.
Kraft Foods Australia-New Zealand spokesman Simon Talbot said the
new name was too far removed from the traditional Vegemite
product.
"We wanted to be bold and have something that gave some distance
between it and Vegemite," he said.
"I would say it gave too much distance with the original
name.
"The new name has simply not resonated with Australians,
particularly the modern technical aspects associated with
it."
A 27-year-old father-of-two from Western Australia had fought off
competition from almost 50,000 submissions to coin what some
considered an odd name for a food product.
Talbot denied the campaign had been a publicity stunt.
"At no point in time has the new Vegemite name been about
initiating a media publicity stunt," he said.
"We are proud custodians of Vegemite and have always been aware
that it is the people's brand and a national icon."
Talbot said Kraft now faced costs associated with rebadging and
advertising the product.
Kraft said tens of thousands of jars labelled iSnack2.0 are
already on shelves.
"Launching a new Vegemite after 85 years was the biggest risk we
have taken as an organisation but the product has been a great
success," he said.
Details of how a revised name will be formulated will be announced
on Friday.
Kraft launched the new version in June after consulting with more
than 300,000 Australians.
