Manufacturing is done under strict physical security and security accounting. A counterfeiter can never legally obtain a sheet of genuine cylinder mould made cotton banknote paper. In contrast plastic polymer used for banknotes started life as a commercially available plastic film. Tens of thousands of tons each year are produced of the same plastic sheet in many different thickness and used for many commercial products. Since the base plastic substrate has no in built security, it is possible to legally obtain similar material to use for the start of a counterfeiting operation.
Counterfeiters can print a coating on the surface as easily as genuine plastic banknote printers.
Choosing a material with the right environmental impact is therefore extremely important. Cotton comes from a renewable source, since it is a crop which is harvested, and then re-sown annually. In using cotton as raw material, the natural resources of the world are not being depleted. Cotton based mould made paper also incorporates re-cycled waste from the textile industry, eliminating the need for this waste to be disposed of. Being a natural product, cotton will also naturally degrade and eventually support new plant growth.