What is Gum Arabic?
Also known as acacia gum, kordofan, meska, char goond is a natural gum made of the hardened sap of various species of the acacia tree.
Gum arabic is harvested from two types of wild Acacia trees, one is Acacia Senegal tree and other is Acacia Seyal.
This resin is obtained through special tappings made on the trunk of the tree. The resinous liquid which comes out of the tappings to heal the cuts on the bark, thickens on contact with the air, forming a hard and glassy gum.
Gum arabic is edible and has E number E414.
Source of Arabic Gum
Gum Arabic is harvested in the gum belt of Africa, this belt starts from Senegal at the west of Africa and ends at Sudan in the east, also known as African sahel.
From the 1950s to the early 1990s, Sudan accounted for roughly 80% of gum Arabic production, today, that figure is probably under 50%.
Sudan is still the world's largest single producer of Arabic Gum.
General Uses
Gum arabic is used primarily in the food industry as a stabilizer. Gum arabic is a key ingredient in traditional lithography and is used in printing, paint production, glue, cosmetics and various industrial applications, including viscosity control in inks and in textile industries, though less expensive materials compete with it for many of these roles.
- Gum Arabic has a long history as additives to ceramic glazes.
- Gum Arabic is used as an emulsifier and a thickening agent in icing, fillings, chewing gum and other confectionery treats.
- Gum Arabic is also used as a water-soluble binder in fireworks composition.
- Gum Arabic is used as a binder for watercolor painting because it dissolves easily in water.
- Gum Arabic is utilized worldwide in a multitude of ways. It’s used in everything from beverage emulsions and confections to functional dietary fiber. Gum Arabic is even utilized in common everyday food and beverages like granola bars and soft drinks
Who is Using
Many manufacturers are using the Gum Arabic, actually you use it in many everyday items without you knowing, these are some of the users of the gum:
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Coca-cola & Pepsi -
Cosmetics manufacturers -
Paints and fireworks makers -
Hard Gummy Candies, Marshmallows, M&M's chocolate Candies and edible glitter makers. -
Bakers using in cake baking and decorating -
Manufacturers of postage stamps, envelopes, and cigarette papers. -
Shoe polish makers -
Pharmaceutical drugs and Wine makers have used gum arabic as a wine fining agent
Specification Data Sheet
This Sudanese standard is formulated by the technical committee No.4 formed according to the administrative decree of the SSM0/1/A/Idated 18/8/01. It applies to gum talha from Acacia seyalvar. seyal. On formulating this standard the committee has referred to international publications and works of Sudanese researchers on the subject.
Hashab Gum (Acacia Senegal)
Talha Gum (Acacia Seyal)
Types We Offer?
We are one of the best Gum Arabic suppliers in Sudan.
Our company offers the two types of gum Arabic mainly in raw form and a possibility to offer processed gum as mechanical powder and kibbled form upon customer’s special request.
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Hashab Gum (Acacia Senegal)
We offer this type in one grade called the cleaned grade which is the standard grade varying from light to dark amber, comprises whole or broken lumps and it contains minimal amount of siftings (fine particles) but dust, bark and dirt is removed. *(please see SSMO specs sheet)
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Talha Gum (Acacia Seyal)
We sort this type into four grades:
- Talha sifting grade – particals size (0.5mm ~ 4mm)
- Talha grade 3 (G3) – particals size (4mm and above)
- Talha dust grade – particals size (under 0.5mm)
- Talha cleaned – consist of minimum 35% sifting and 65 % G3
Difference between Hashab & Talha gums
A joint FAO/WHO committee of experts on food additives (JEFCA) indicated in its Compendium on food additives- Addendum 7 (1999) that no distinctions were made between Acacia Senegal and Acacia seyal.
Since, currently, both Acacia gums are almost equal in industrial relevance, a complete description of both Acacia gums becomes a key tool for a better understanding of gum quality determinants, leading a better selection, use, and control of gums for specific applications.
(*) Refer to the SSMO specification sheet for each for more details.
Types & forms
Mainly there are two types of gum Arabic :
Acacia Senegal : also known as Kordofan or Hashab which is considered commercially as grade one.
Acaia Seyal : also known as Talha and its considers commercially as second grade gum.
These two types of gum Arabic are found in four forms:
- Raw Form: which is directly extracted from the tree without any processing, but it may be cleaned and graded.
- Kibbled form (in different sizes)
- Mechanical Powder form. (different micron mesh)
- Spray dried form. (which is considered as final product form)
Gum Arabic & Fiber
Acacia is known as a good source of dietary fiber because it contains about 90 percent soluble fiber. This type of fiber, which dissolves in water, is an important part of your diet. It helps the digestive system run smoothly and reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have approved acacia as an additive in foods and drugs. This means it’s considered safe for manufactures to use in their products. Recently, the FDA also approved acacia as an ingredient in products such as breakfast cereals, snack bars, and baked goods. It’s also recognized as a source of dietary fiber and can be advertised as such.
Gum exporting process
- We pack our gum in 25kg or 50 kg poly propylene (PP) bags.
- We load the 20 feet containers with up to 22 metric tons of the gum.
- The minimum order quantity (20ft FCL) takes a period of 10 to 15 days to be on board of the vessel, this period varies depending on the quantity ordered.
- The port of loading is PORTSUDAN (SDPZU), with a possibility to re-export from other nearby ports in the middle east.
- Lead time to reach the clients desired port depends on the shipping lines used and the destination to that port, usually varies between 2 to 8 weeks for the farest destination.
- The H.S code for the Arabic gum is 13012000 (*)
- Payment terms and documents provided along with the shipment are mentioned at the products main page **(please check)
- Sudanese Gum Arabic is exempted from the US sanctions against Sudan, and can be exported directly from PORTSUDAN using a special OFAC license.
(*) Need to be confirmed form each country customs authorities.
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