VEGANS WANT FAT-FREE MONEY
london» The Bank of England’s new plastic 5-pound note is stronger, cleaner and safer — but apparently not suitable for vegetarians.
Vegans and vegetarians are calling for the new bank notes, which have been in circulation for only two months, to be replaced because they are made with a substance derived from animal fat.
The Bank of England confirmed on Twitter that the notes contain “a trace of a substance known as tallow” — a rendered form of animal fat, processed from suet, which is sometimes used in soaps and candles.
An online petition against the notes says the use of tallow is “unacceptable to millions of vegans, vegetarians, Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and others in the U.K.”
The Bank of Canada says its bank notes also have tallow, according to a CBC report.