True true but we also have things similar to these pastes but they come in tubes and often have mayonnaise. Don't you think that's kind of the same idea?

No, I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole. But I do remember my grandparents eating such things in the early 1960s. And British cuisine (?) has a long (centuries) history of potted meats and shrimps, which I guess these are trying to emulate. A bit like the French and pate.

Maybe it’s an old Australian thing then :)