I often find it curious that one culture will look at another and what they eat with distaste when they probably eat stuff that's just as weird.
Proteas grow here, all over the place actually but yes, they have been brought here. I dug up that post I mentioned in my comment above if you're interested. The link is below.
https://peakd.com/hive-163772/@galenkp/hometown-touring
Also...Marmite is heinous...It's all about Vegemite here. It's the best.
Thank you!