A convicted murderer serving a life sentence in Australia has lost his bid to overturn a ban on prisoners consuming Vegemite - the salty yeast-based spread that has become a national symbol.

Andre McKechnie argued that the ban, in place since 2006, denied him the right to "enjoy his culture as an Australian".

Authorities in the state of Victoria say inmates may use the strong-smelling paste to disguise contraband substances or to brew alcohol behind bars.

And on Monday, a Supreme Court judge rejected McKechnie's appeal, saying the prisoner's "cultural rights are limited primarily by the fact he has been sentenced to a term of imprisonment".

In his lawsuit against Victoria's Department of Justice and Corrections, the agency which manages the state's prisons, McKechnie, 54, said the ban on the spread breached law requiring prisons to provide food that allowed inmates to maintain their health and well-being but the judge said that had not been proven.

McKechnie was handed a life sentence for stabbing a…