Marmite awarded to New Zealand medal winners

A sign alerting customers that a product is out of stock is placed in front of an empty shelf where Marmite is usually found at a supermarket in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday, March 20. (Sarah Ivey, Associated Press/New Zealand Herald)

Medal winners from New Zealand at the London Games are being rewarded with a national product that's currently just as difficult to obtain: Marmite.

The Sanitarium factory, which produces the iconic spread, was damaged in the November earthquake in Christchurch. It has since stopped production until later this year, leaving Marmite as rare and valued product in New Zealand.

The shortage itself has become known by some as "Marmageddon," including as a hashtag on Twitter.

The spreadable food product, made from yeast extract, is a popular product in New Zealand as well as the United Kingdom, although the two countries' versions of the spread are slightly different in taste. Its flavour is well known to be divisive, with the UK version's website divided into I'm a Lover and I'm a Hater sections.

According to BBC News, the Pak'n'Save supermarket chain decided to ship their last caches of Marmite to medal-winning members of their Olympic team.

New Zealand's equestrian eventing team were the first to receive their shipments of the black gold after their bronze medal result on Monday. Pak'n'Save's Twitter account posted a photo of the team holding small boxes containing jars of the spread.

"Who could be more deserving than our Olympic medallists," said Steve Anderson, managing director of Pak'n'Save's parent company Foodstuff New Zealand. "To come to London and prove to the world that they are the best in their discipline is no mean feat."

Medallists from New Zealand received a gift for their placement that is uniquely theirs, which got the CBC Community Team thinking:

If you won a medal at the Olympics, what uniquely Canadian product or novelty would you want as a prize? A rare or long-discontinued favourite from the grocery store? A vacation to anywhere in the country? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.