The safety of gum arabic as a food additive and its Energy Value as an ingredient: a brief review

Gum arabic, the natural exudate from Acacia senegal (L.) Willd., has enjoyed the toxicological status ‘ADI not specified’ for use in minor proportions as a food additive (E414 in the EEC) since 1982, but it is also used as a major ingredient. Manufacturers may therefore be required to make labelling declarations of its Energy Value and of available/non‐available carbohydrate. Although gum arabic complies with the definition for soluble dietary fibre, its Energy Value was accepted by the FAO/WHO International Programme of Food Safety to be 4 kcal/gram on the basis of the evidence available in 1982. Subsequently a French claim for a much lower value attracted the attention of manufacturers of low calorie products but a recent precise experiment establishes that the Digestible Energy Value is 3.5 ± 0.12 kilocalories per gram. The physiological mechanism whereby this value arieses is outlined. The more general dietary implications for other complex carbohydrates which conform to the definition for soluble dietary fibre and yet suffer complete degradation in the large bowel are indicated.