The Reserve Bank has confirmed that Australia’s new $5 note contains the same kind of animal fat found in the new British £5 note that has prompted an outcry amongst UK vegetarians and vegans.
More than 130,000 people signed a petition that has been presented to the Bank of England calling on an immediate end to the practice of using tallow - a waxy white fat that's made from the kidneys and loins of cows, sheep and horses – in the new polymer notes.
"This is unacceptable to millions of vegans, vegetarians, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and others in the U.K.," the petition says.
Innovia Films, the company that supplies the polymer plastic used in the £5 notes, also supplies material used in polymer money in 23 other countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Canada.
“The manufacturer of the polymer material used in Australia’s banknotes (Innovia Films) has confirmed that the material contains minuscule amounts of additives that are derived from tallow,” Ian Chua, Senior Communications Officer, Reserve Bank of Australia, told Print21 via email.
“I understand these additives assist in the manufacturing process, which is common with many commercially available plastic products. For specific information about the production of the polymer material in question, I’d suggest contacting the manufacturer.”
Innovia, a British manufacturer of polypropylene and cellulose films for packaging, labelling, graphic arts and industrial products – with offices in the US, Europe and Melbourne – says it only recently become aware of the issue and is now looking for ways to get rid of the "minute" traces of tallow in its polymer.
Spokeswoman Patricia Potts says a supplier had used tallow to help make the material more anti-static. Potts said Innovia would never "knowingly add any animal ingredients into our products."
Polymer is a flexible substance that is resistant to dirt and lasts longer than paper cash.