Food Grade Guar Gum

Among various natural agro products, guar gum occupies a very important place, as it is a rich source of high quality galactomannan polysaccharide. Guar Gum is extracted from guar seeds grown in a plant about 4 feet high known as guar plant. This guar plant is grown in India and Pakistan sown in July and harvested in October. The seeds from this plant are allowed to dry in sun. After drying the seeds in the sun, they are separated and processed into a flour which is known as guar gum powder. The guar gum splits are also sold as they have many uses in various industries. The processing technique of guar gum depends on the requirement of the end product. The guar gum powder has more thickening ability than cornstarch. It not only works as a thickener but also works as binder and plasticizer as well. Guar gum is easily soluble in water and has a natural ability to bind with water molecules. Without a binder like guar gum, different ingredients in might separate into watery mess as far as creamy processed foods are concerned. The most important characteristic of Guar is its ability to be dispersed in water and hydrate or swell rapidly and almost completely in cold water to form viscous colloidal dispersions or sols. The viscosity attained is dependent on time, Temperature, concentration, pH, rate of agitation, and particle size of the powdered gum is used. The lower the temperature, the lower the rate at which viscosity increases, and the lower the final viscosity.