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Nigeria produces less than 30 per cent as Sudan produces about 70 per cent, leaving about 30 per cent for Nigeria and other gum Arabic producing countries of Mali, Senegal, Chad and Niger Republic. Gum Arabic  is natural product derived from hardened acacia tree sap, harvested in the Sahel region of Africa. Gum Arabic  is used primarily by the food industry. Given its many desirable properties, safety record and natural origin, Gum Arabic  is the most commercially valuable of what are known as exudate gums – those secreted by plants. Commercially,  Acacia senegal  and  Acacia seyal  are the two most important sources of acacia gum for Europe. The tree sources of acacia gum grow in the gum belt of Africa, which stretches from Senegal in the west to Somalia in the east. Acacia gum from  Acacia senegal  is a pale to orange-brown coloured solid, which breaks with a glassy fracture. For this reason it is also known as hard gum, whereas  Acacia seyal  is known as flaky gum.  It is