Cenovis is a dark brown food paste from

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

consisting of

yeast extract Yeast extracts consist of the cell contents of yeast without the cell walls; they are used as food additives or flavorings, or as nutrients for bacterial culture Growing media, media. They are often used to create savoury flavors and umami tast ...

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...

carrot The carrot ('' Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in colour, though heirloom variants including purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild ...

s and

spice In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of pl ...

s. Sold internationally under the brand Sonaris, it is similar to English Marmite, Brazilian Cenovit, and Australian

Vegemite Vegemite ( ) is a thick, dark brown Australian food spread made from leftover brewers' yeast extract with various vegetable and spice Food additive, additives. It was developed by Cyril Callister in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, for ...

. Rich in vitamin B₁, it may be used to flavour soups, sausages, and salads. The most popular way to consume Cenovis, however, is to spread it on a slice of buttered bread, as stated on the product's packaging. It can also be blended into butter and used as a spread or a filling for croissants and buns. The company does not disclose whether the Swiss Cenovis was a licensed product from the older German one. In contrast to comparable yeast extracts, the Swiss Cenovis, similar to Thomy mustard, was sold in tubes early on and is somewhat lighter and more liquid.

Protein versus vitamin

Since the beginning of the 20th century many attempts to turn brewer's yeast into food have been made. The main reason being its availability and nutritional physiology. The English Marmite (1902) and the Australian Vegemite (1922) became successful as products. 1912 Casimir Funk discovered an active ingredient against deficiency diseases which he called vitamin. The high

thiamine Thiamine, also known as thiamin and vitamin B1, is a vitamin – an Nutrient#Micronutrients, essential micronutrient for humans and animals. It is found in food and commercially synthesized to be a dietary supplement or medication. Phosp ...

content (vitamin B₁) then became the quality of nutritional yeast that was more effective in advertising than its protein content, which had been known for a long time.

Origins in Germany

In 1915, Cenovis Nahrungsmittelwerke GmbH was founded in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

as a brewer's yeast and

malt Malt is any cereal grain that has been made to germinate by soaking in water and then stopped from germinating further by drying with hot air, a process known as "malting". Malted grain is used to make beer, whisky, malted milk, malt vinegar, ...

factory, which also produced by-products of these products and other foods such as

oatmeal Oatmeal is a preparation of oats that have been dehusked, steamed, and flattened, or a coarse flour of hulled oat grains ( groats) that have either been milled (ground), rolled, or steel-cut. Ground oats are also called white oats. Steel- ...

and

baking powder Baking powder is a dry chemical leavening agent, a mixture of a carbonate or bicarbonate and a weak acid. The base and acid are prevented from reacting prematurely by the inclusion of a buffer such as cornstarch. Baking powder is used to increas ...

, making it one of Maggi's main competitors. The German Cenovis vitamin extract was available from around 1920 in jars labeled "unbegrenzt haltbar" (unlimited shelf life). The image of the Cenovis products was associated with the life reform movement (from which the Reformhäuser emerged). It was reported in 1921 that the Cenovis yeast extract consisted of cleaned and de-bittered brewer's yeast and had a honey-like consistency. It has a "similar, only finer taste than Liebig's meat extract". The founder and main shareholder of Cenovis, Julius Schülein, a son of the brewery owner Joseph Schülein, reports in his book from 1938 (the year when his Munich company was expropriated by

Aryanization Aryanization () was the Nazi term for the seizure of property from Jews and its transfer to non-Jews, and the forced expulsion of Jews from economic life in Nazi Germany, Axis powers, Axis-aligned states, and their occupied territories. It enta ...

and he emigrated to the USA) about an Cenovis vitamin yeast produced in Switzerland. In the same year, the Australian trademark Cenovis was established.

Swiss manufacturing

Cenovis is popular in

(particularly

Romandie Romandy ( or ; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Romandia'')Before World War I, the term French Switzerland () waalso used ( or , , ) is the Swiss French, French-speaking historical and cultural region of Switzerland. In 2020, about 2 million pe ...

). It was developed in Rheinfelden in 1931, on the initiative of a master brewer named Alex Villinger. Since 1935, they have been producing Cenovis extract alongside brewer's yeast and other by-products. In 1955, Cenovis became part of the Swiss Army's survival ration. In 1965, Vitamin-Hefe AG acquired all of the word marks and manufacturing processes from Cenovis-Werke GmbH in Munich. The foreign trademark rights were sold to the Hügli Group in Steinach SG. The Heirler Cenovis GmbH that emerged from it has a similar range of products as the Munich Cenovis of the time.

Revival

Cenovis yeast extract was developed during times of economic crisis, aimed at replacing meat products like

sausage A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs, may be included as fillers or extenders. ...

s. It is economical, long-lasting without refrigeration, and shares similarities with the Australian spread Vegemite. However, unlike Vegemite, which has become a staple in the harsh environment of the Australian outback, Cenovis has seen a decline in sales in Switzerland. In German-speaking Switzerland, it remains popular among the older generation, while in French-speaking Switzerland, it only gained traction after being relaunched by Michel Yagchi in 1999, with the help of Didier Fischer and Frank Guemara, who applied modern marketing techniques to rejuvenate the brand. On 29 February 2008, Michel Yagchi transferred the brand, acquired in 1999, to Gustav Gerig AG, an

Aargau Aargau ( ; ), more formally the Canton of Aargau (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capital is Aarau. Aargau is one of the most nort ...

company, and the product thereby returned to its canton of origin. Cenovis has been manufactured by Sonaris AG in Arisdorf BL since 2008. Sonaris AG was founded in

Rheinfelden AG Rheinfelden (; ) is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Aargau in Switzerland, seat of the district of Rheinfelden (district), Rheinfelden. It is located 15 kilometres east of Basel. The name m ...

in 1997 as the successor company to Leiber Vitamin-Hefe AG. From then on, the production rights for the production of the Cenovis extract were held by the company Sonaris AG, which relocated its headquarters from Rheinfelden to Arisdorf in 2003. In 2008, Cenovis' Swiss trademark rights were bought back by Sonaris AG. International distribution, notably in France, uses the Sonaris brand instead. In 2013, the two companies Cenovis AG and Sonaris AG merged to form today's Cenovis AG, based in Arisdorf. The company presents the following story behind Cenovis:

"In 1931, a brewer recycled the yeast used for the fermentation of beer: vegetal substances very rich in vitamin B₁. After several tests, the product was perfected and a group of Swiss brewers launched Cenovis; the product was an immediate success and the famous spread was so good that from 1955 it was included in the rations for Swiss soldiers... Healthy and strong soldiers!" (French)

References

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