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Gum Arabic, also known as Gum Acacia, is considered the oldest of all
natural gums. It is the natural gum exuded by various species of Acacia.
The trees grow mainly in the sub-Sahara zone of Africa and the main gum
arabic producing and exporting countries include Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad,
Mali and Sudan.
Gum Arabic has been present in the market for years and as time and
technology advance, gum arabic is making a bigger and better place for
itself. Due to huge drop in prices and quality control assurance provided
by growing technology, producers are readily using gum arabic in
confectionery, beverages, encapsulated flavors, and pharmaceuticals
products.
Today, gum arabic is readily available and because it has tremendous
export potential, its market is growing, but producers will have to
maintain a consistency and supply and assure great quality to let the
business grow.
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| Properties |
Crystal |
Granular |
Powdered |
| Form |
Powder |
Granular |
Powder |
| Color |
White
to Cream |
Lt.
Amber |
Off
White |
| Color
of solution |
Lt. Amber |
Lt. Amber |
Lt. Amber |
| Purity
(minimum) |
99% |
99% |
99% |
| Taste |
None |
None |
None |
| Viscosity
of 20% solution (maximum) |
150
cps |
200
cps |
200
cps |
| pH of
20% solution |
4.0 - 4.9 |
4.0 - 4.9 |
4.0 - 4.9 |
| Moisture
Content at 105 șC (maximum) |
12%
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15%
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15% |
| Total
Ash (maximum) |
4% |
4% |
4% |
| Acid
insoluble residue (maximum) |
0.10% |
0.25% |
0.20% |
| Total
dietary fiber (As
Is) (min) |
85% min |
80 |
80 |
| Total
dietary fiber (Dry Weight) (min) |
90% |
90% |
90% |
| By Standard Test,
all the three forms
of gum arabic all tasteless as well as odorless and are soluble in
cold water. They do not
contain Starch, Dextrin, Tannin, Salmonella or Escherichia coli.
However low presence of
Arsenic, Lead and Heavy Metal is detected.
The maximum quantity of Arsenic, Lead, and Heavy metals present in all
three forms is 3 ppm, 5 ppm and 20 ppm respectively.
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