I recently reviewed Morningstar Farms Chik Patties, and when reading the way-too-long list of ingredients I came upon gum acacia. Great. Another ingredient that sounds weird and unhealthy.

So what is it? If you're curious read more.

Well lo and behold, gum acacia is a natural gum or sap taken from the acacia tree. It's added to foods to act as a stabilizer, emulsifier (binds ingredients together that ordinary don't mix well), or thickener, and it's totally edible. You may also see it called gum arabic. Besides veggie chicken patties, you'll also find it in sodas (like Coca-Cola), hard chewy candies like gumdrops, marshmallows, and chewing gum. Pharmaceutical companies use it to keep medicines from separating into their different ingredients. It's used in shoe polish, the lickable adhesive on stamps and cigarette papers, and newspaper ink to prevent smudging. Well at least now we know it's made from a plant, and not something we need to worry about.

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