The battle in Sudan has turned consideration to a hardly ever mentioned commodity: gum arabic. This product, the dried sap of sure species of acacia bushes, is used primarily as an additive within the delicate drinks trade. Sudan accounts for about 70% of world gum arabic exports. Asgar Ali, an knowledgeable in sustainable meals programs, solutions questions concerning the commodity and its prospects.
What’s gum arabic?
Acacia gum, generally referred to as gum arabic, is derived from sure sorts of acacia bushes: Senegalia senegal and Vachellia seyal.
Sap is extracted from acacia bushes by reducing incisions of their bark that permit the liquid to seep out. After that, the sap turns into gum.
Its distinct qualities and water solubility make it helpful throughout a variety of sectors, together with prescribed drugs, meals and drinks, and private care industries. It’s an ingredient in processed meals, delicate drinks and confections, a thickening agent in chewing gums, a binder in watercolour paints, as additive in ceramic glazes and an adhesive within the rolling papers utilized in cigarettes. It’s a well-known emulsifier, an additive which helps two liquids combine. It’s additionally utilized in textiles and medicines.
Gum arabic has been round for ages. Its first recorded use dates again to 2000 BC, when historic Egyptians employed it in foodstuffs, hieroglyphic paints and mummification ointments.
The place is it produced?
Gum arabic is produced primarily within the Sahel space of Africa, the area stretching from Senegal on the Atlantic coast, by elements of Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Sudan to Eritrea on the Purple Coastline. In east Africa, it’s produced in Kenya, Somalia and Tanzania.
Sudan is a important producer in addition to a key participant within the processing and export of premium gum arabic to markets internationally. One other well-known producer, Chad, has additionally superior its means to extract gum arabic.
The Sahel is dry and semi-arid, excellent for acacia crops.
As well as, the Sahel’s local weather is ideal for the harvesting of the sap. Throughout the sap harvesting season, excessive temperatures, low humidity and little rainfall encourage the sap to dry and harden rapidly as soon as it’s seeped out from cuts within the tree bark. It’s then harvested.
There’s an intensive worth chain (a variety of actions from farming to processing and advertising) for gum arabic in Africa, particularly in Sudan and Chad. These nations have huge acacia forests and plantations and gum processing services.
Gum arabic is a main agricultural product in Sudan after oily seeds. Almost half of Sudan’s manufacturing (49.3%) is from the Kordofan area. The Kassala (24.4%), Darfur (23.4%) and White and Blue Nile (2.9%) areas account for the opposite half. In 2019, Sudan exported the gum primarily to the European Union (51,060,900kg), India (13,414,300kg) and the UK (3,299,710kg).
The market is kind of liberalised in Sudan, the place non-public entities clear, kind, grade and pack the gum at processing services. Till 2009, a monopoly existed in Sudan: the Gum Arabic Firm, partly state-owned, was the one entity allowed to export the commodity.
What are its makes use of?
Within the Sahel, gum arabic has been used for hundreds of years to stabilise and thicken meals. It’s additionally used medicinally to appease sore throats and assist with digestive issues.
For the reason that industrial revolution, the gum has been used on an industrial scale:
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Within the meals and drinks sector, gum arabic serves as an emulsifier and stabiliser. It’s regularly used to enhance texture and mouthfeel, and to keep away from crystallisation in processed meals, delicate drinks and confectionery.
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In prescribed drugs, it’s used to encapsulate drugs, make options and bind tablets.
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In textiles it’s used to repair colors in printing and dyeing.
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In pictures and portray it’s used as a coating for light-sensitive gadgets and as a binder for paints.
What are its prospects?
Gum arabic has brilliant future prospects for a variety of causes.
It’s ideally positioned to fulfill the rising demand within the meals sector for pure elements.
Its dietary fibre content material implies that new makes use of may very well be discovered for it as a dietary complement.
Gum arabic could discover new makes use of in quite a lot of sectors because of ongoing analysis and innovation, increasing its market.
What are the threats?
Political instability might have a major affect on the gum arabic market, significantly in Sudan.
Sudan has been a key participant within the gum arabic trade for many years. But it surely has confronted political instability, civil conflicts and financial challenges. Exports from Darfur and Kordofan have been severely affected for the reason that begin of the conflict with suppliers warning their stockpiles might run out quickly if the combating continues. A drop in manufacturing would imply decreased or much less dependable exports, affecting the worldwide provide chain.
Worldwide consumers usually search secure sources of uncooked supplies to make sure a constant provide, and political instability in Sudan might make this tough.
Somalia is just not as massive a producer as Sudan. However the nation’s extended political instability and conflicts have disrupted its agricultural and export sectors, together with gum arabic manufacturing. This reduces the general market dimension and limits Somalia’s means to take part within the worldwide gum arabic commerce.
Sustainable cultivation of acacia bushes and good gum harvesting practices will likely be important to safe a dependable and long-term provide of gum arabic, contributing to its prospects.
