Vegetarians and vegans have been left horrified after it was revealed that the new £5 note contains a derivative of animal fat.
This was revealed when the Bank of England responded to a tweet asking if the polymer note, which was introduced earlier this year, contains tallow:
Tallow is a is a rendered form of beef or mutton fat, sometimes used in the production items including soap and candles.
The Bank of England said that they provided the following explanation to any members of the public who asked about the inclusion of tallow...
“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.”
A petition calling on the Bank to produce notes without tallow had gained over 15,000 signatures at the time of writing.
It read: “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. “
A number of people on social media also expressed their horror at the revelation...
Although some seemed less bothered...
The new note said by the Bank of England to be cleaner, safer and stronger than paper notes, lasting around five years longer.
Bank of England governor Mark Carney said of the new note: “The use of polymer means it can better withstand being repeatedly folded into wallets or scrunched up inside pockets and can also survive a spin in the washing machine.
“We expect polymer notes to last at least two and-a-half times longer than the current generation of fivers and therefore reduce future costs of production.”