A spokesperson from the Bank of England has confirmed to Vegan Trade Journal that the new £5 contain animal fat.
The new notes are printed on thin flexible plastic known as polymer, making them more secure and hard wearing than the paper notes. Because of the plastic coating, they are wipe clean.
This confirmation follows a day of speculation and outrage on social media sites. The Bank of England responded to one Twitter user to say the notes contain a ‘trace’ of tallow – animal fat.
The spokesperson told Vegan Life: “We can confirm that the polymer pellet from which the base substrate is made contains a trace of a substance known as tallow. Tallow is derived from animal fats (suet) and is a substance that is also widely used in the manufacture of candles and soap.”
Over 1,700 people have signed an online petition demanding that tallow is no longer used in the production of these notes. It says: “The new £5 notes contain animal fat in the form of tallow. This is unacceptable to millions of vegans & vegetarians in the UK. We demand that you cease to use animal products in the production of currency that we have to use.”
Picture credit: Copyright – Bank of England