Organic guar gum powder

Guar gum is made from the seeds of the guar bean. It is not a basic ingredient in our meal replacement drinks, but a functional food additive listed under the designation E 412. Until the end of the Second World War, guar was used primarily as livestock feed, before its importance as a crop was recognized. Today, certain parts of the guar bean are found in an immense variety of products, meaning that practically everyone around the world consumes them every day—usually without knowing it. Guar gum has almost unlimited applications: it is used as a binding and thickening agent, gelling aid, stabilizer, and filler. Guar gum is known not only by the designation E 412, but also by the names guar flour, guaran, guar, and guar gum.

How is guar gum made?

The seed of the fruit is needed to produce guar gum. The plant’s leaves can be eaten as a vegetable like spinach. The green pods can also be prepared as a vegetable or salad. The ripe seeds must be cooked before consumption; they are extremely nutritious. Guar is still widely used as animal feed today. However, the seeds are mainly processed into flour.

1. CULTIVATION

   The guar fruit, also known as the cluster bean, grows from July to December. During the growing season, temperatures should preferably remain between 25 and 30 degrees Celsius, as the plant is sensitive to cold. It prefers dry conditions because a warm, humid climate encourages pests and diseases. The guar plant is highly adaptable in terms of soil conditions.

   THE PLANT PREFERS DRY CONDITIONS

2. HARVESTING, DRYING, THRESHING

   In India, the harvest is laboriously carried out by hand. To obtain the seed, the outer layers, or pods, must be removed. To do this, the beans are first dried and then threshed. Threshing is the mechanical process by which the seed—also referred to as the germ, kernel, or grain, depending on the fruit—is separated from the plant hull.

   HARVESTING BY HAND

3. FURTHER PROCESSING OF THE SEED

   The outer layers of the “seeds” obtained by threshing are removed in a thermomechanical process. The so-called “guar splits” are then produced by separating the hull from the germ. The protein-rich nutritive tissue, also known as the endosperm, makes up 35 to 42 percent of the seed and forms the basis for producing guar gum. The germ accounts for 43 to 48 percent and the hull for 14 to 17 percent of the guar seed.

   THE “GUAR SPLITS” ARE PRODUCED

4. THE FLOUR IS CREATED

   For use in food products, the purity of guar gum is crucial. To achieve this, the splits are finally finely ground using various milling processes. The finished product contains 10 to 15 percent water, 5 percent protein, 2.5 percent crude fiber (dietary fiber), and 1 percent ash. Producing guar gum is relatively labor-intensive. Along with high demand, this is one reason why guar gum is a high-priced product.

   A HIGH-PRICED PRODUCT

Why guar gum?

Gluten-free guar gum is a functional ingredient in numerous foods. At BERTRAND, we use organic guar gum because it lightly thickens the mixed meal drink and gives it a creamy consistency. This prevents a crumb sediment from settling at the bottom of the BERTRAND shaker. Guar gum allows the powdered ingredients to combine optimally with the added liquid. Since the gum has no distinctive taste and is not particularly nutrient-rich, its function is limited solely to this property. The abundant fiber also plays no significant role, as the amount added to BERTRAND meal drinks is too small. Guar gum—which, incidentally, has properties comparable to locust bean gum—consists mainly of the plant gum guar (guar gum), a plant-based mucilage. The nutrient tissue surrounding the seeds, the endosperm, contains between 65 and 76 percent galactomannans, i.e. long-chain carbohydrates. Approximately 6 to 7 percent is protein; the remainder consists primarily of the sugars mannose and galactose. This composition results in an enormous capacity to absorb and bind water.

Can guar gum cause problems?

Guar gum is a plant-based natural product by origin. As with all plant substances, sensitive individuals may experience hypersensitivity or allergic symptoms. The potentially relevant ingredients—such as allergenic proteins, saponins, or fluoroacetic acid—are not, or are only partially, inactivated by the manufacturing process. Consuming larger amounts can cause intestinal discomfort such as flatulence or abdominal cramps because guar is virtually indigestible, while intestinal bacteria break down its polysaccharides. This produces gases. If guar gum is used without sufficient liquid, for example in capsule or powder form, its very high swelling capacity can cause a blockage of the esophagus, stomach, or intestine. At BERTRAND, we use only very small amounts of guar gum in our products. According to the EFSA evaluation in 2016, the use of guar gum is considered safe and does not pose a health risk. For this reason, no ADI value was established either (ADI = acceptable daily intake). This value indicates the daily dose of a substance that can be consumed without any adverse effects on health being expected. An ADI value is defined for many other food additives, but not for guar gum. But what exactly is a food additive? We would like to briefly explain this at the end.

What exactly are food additives?