Guar gum is a non-ionic galactomannan exo-polysaccharide extracted from guar beans that has thickening and stabilizing properties useful in food, animal feed, and industrial applications . The structural feature of guar gum backbone is made of a linear chain of mannose with short lateral-branches of galactose .
Guar Gum is more soluble than Locust Bean Gum because it has extra galactose branch which can be seen from the structure & is insoluble in hydrocarbon solvents. Guar gum can withstand temperatures of 80°C for five minutes.
Aqueous solutions of guar gum are hydrocolloidal & are exhibit non-ionic in nature. The guar gum is unaffected & stable between pH 5 to 7. Strongly acidic conditions like pH 3 at 50°C or strong alkali concentrations, guar gum degrades due to its hydrolysis & results in loss of viscosity.
Guar Gum - GUAR-G
Due to Guar Gums’ ability to achieve high viscosity only a small quantity is required when compared to starches, making it economical to use.
Guar Gum can stabilize emulsions as it can :
It is widely used as an additive in the manufacture of soups, sauces, yoghurts, cottage cheese, curds & frozen desserts. Guar gum is also used in other technical industries such as textile sizing, agarbatti, paper industries, mosquito coils etc.
