UK activists have scored a victory in their campaign against the Bank of England making bank notes out of animal fat, while Australian currency has been non-veg for more than 20 years, with barely any protest.

That's right, your crisp polymer notes contain tallow; the boiled fat of sheep or cows. The animal part is less than one percent of the total weight, and helps the notes stay slippery.

This fact emerged last year, when the Bank of England announced a new kind of five pound note that would be more durable, and harder to fake.

Here's an inspiring video about the new fiver: cleaner, safer, stronger.

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The new notes were based on the kind of technology Australia has been using since the mid-1990s, and were supplied by the same company, Innovia Films.

Then a tweeted question from the public led to the news this technology meant using tallow, and a UK protest movement sprung up. It included vegetarians and vegans, as well as representatives for religions that forbid the use of beef products, such as Hindus, Sikhs and Jains.

Tallow is already used in lots of household items, including candles and soap, and the notes only use trace amounts - the total amount of the product required for all five pound notes in circulation in the UK is about half a cow, according to Vice's calculations.

But the national currency is no normal object - some saw the tallow-tech as a deliberate snub to vegans, and a show of disrespect to certain minority religious groups.

More than 100,000 people signed a petition calling for the Bank of England (BoE) to have the animal product removed from the new polymer notes.

This month, the BoE announced it was not bowing to the protests; it would not withdraw the new five pound note from circulation, and it would re-issue the ten pound note as polymer.

But in a concession to the controversy, BoE said it would launch a consultation before issuing new twenty pound notes.

It has told the Hindu Council UK it is working with suppliers to investigate plant-based alternatives to tallow, including possibly coconut oil or palm oil.

So where's the Australian protest?

When Hack asked Australian animal rights groups if they supported any protest, most said this was a fringe issue, and they wanted to focus more on simply not killing animals.

Vegans Australia and Vegan Society NSW both said it was better to work towards a world where animals were not exploited, rather than worry about every animal byproduct.

Tallow is found in cosmetics, plastic bags, bike tyres and crayons. Animal products are everywhere; many condom brands use a lubricant derived from milk.

"We don't exist in a vegan world, and we have to make compromises along the way," said Michael McNally from Vegan Society NSW.

"We also see the way this issue is used in a polarising way; it's been framed as one of those areas where vegans are complaining."

"It's just a way of generating headlines, it wasn't a serious issue from the vegan community.

It's more clickbait than anything."

Animals Australia passed Hack on to PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), which said it was against the tallow bank notes, but it was not a major campaign priority.

"The best way to help animals is not to avoid bank notes, but rather to vote with our wallets and not give our cash to industries which harm animals and the environment," PETA Australia’s Associate Director of Campaigns Ashley Fruno said.

Hack also contacted the Hindu Council of Australia. It had not responded by the time of publication.