![Is Arab rubber financing the war? Problems with the origin of raw material [World News]](https://foodcom.pl/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Foodcom_World_News_CAT_3-1520x760.jpg "Is Arab rubber financing the war? Problems with the origin of raw material [World News]")
- Gum Arabic, a key ingredient in products such as Coca-Cola and M&M’s, is increasingly being smuggled out of Sudan, which is engulfed in civil war.
- Rapid Support Forces (RSF) control the main production areas of the raw material and take a toll on traffickers, meaning that export revenues can fund the war effort.
- Smuggled rubber ends up on international markets, where it is often sold as a product of other countries, such as Chad and Senegal.
- The unregulated trade in gum arabic poses challenges for companies seeking to maintain ethical and transparent supply chains.
Smuggling routes of gum Arabic from war-torn Sudan
Gum Arabic, a popular emulsifier and stabiliser and a key ingredient in products such as Coca-Cola and M&M’s, is increasingly being smuggled out of rebel-controlled areas in war-torn Sudan. Sudan accounts for around 80% of the world’s gum arabic production, with Kordofan and Darfur being the main harvesting areas. These areas were seized late last year by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) waging war against the Sudanese national army. Since then, gum arabic can only be sold by Sudanese traders for a fee to the RSF, helping to fund the war effort. The raw material often goes to neighbouring countries without proper certification, making it difficult to document the ethical and sustainable origin of the raw material.
Problems with certification and ethics in the supply chain
In recent months, traders from countries with less gum arabic production than Sudan, such as Chad, Senegal, Egypt and South Sudan, which previously hardly exported the raw material, have started aggressively offering gum arabic at low prices and without proof of its origin from conflict-free areas. This situation makes it difficult for global companies to maintain ethical supply chains. Industry representatives stress that it is difficult to determine the origin of the rubber supply because many traders do not disclose it. Companies such as Nexira and Ingredion have taken steps to diversify their sources of supply to minimise the impact of conflict on their supply chains.
