Growing Penetration of Guar Gum in the Pharmaceutical Industry to Boost the Market Growth

Introduction

Natural polymers are an attractive class of biodegradable and eco-friendly polymers, and they are readily available. Guar gum is a cheap, readily available natural polymer and can be modified chemically using suitable reagents.  Guar gum is increasingly becoming popular among various industries such as food and beverages, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and other industries for its multiple functions such as thickening, binding, and stabilizing agents. Guar gum finds its application in pharmaceutical formulations due to its distinctive properties and lack of toxicity.

The demand for guar gum is increasing in the pharmaceutical industry, owing to its viscosity-enhancing properties. Guar gum is used as a disintegrating and binding agent in tablets and utilized as a controlled-released agent for the drug. It is extensively used as a rate-controlling excipient in designing novel drug delivery systems. Moreover, guar gum acts as an antimicrobial, laxative and hypolipidemic agent, antiproliferative, appetite suppressing agent, which further allows it to use it in therapeutically formulations. The increasing application of guar gum and its derivatives in pharmaceutical and biomedical areas is expected to propel the market as these industries are growing fast.

According to the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EPFIA), from 2013 to 2017, the pharmaceutical market in Latin America grew significantly, with an 11.5% growth rate of the Brazilian Pharmaceutical Market. In Asia-Pacific, China and India were the fastest-growing nations in the pharmaceutical market; the countries grew by 9.4% and 11%. The European market grew by 4.4%, and the U.S. market grew by 7.3% during 2013–2017. Moreover, according to Statista, the global pharmaceutical industry generated USD 1,240.4 billion in 2019. This increasing growth is anticipated to propel the guar gum market in the near future.

Competitive Players

1. Vikas WSP Ltd.
2. Abdullahbhai Abdul Kader Group
3. Shree Ram Industries
4. Cargill Incorporated
5. DuPont Nutrition & Health
6. Agro Gums, India Glycols Ltd.
7. Rama Gum Industries (India) Pvt. Ltd.
8. Lotus Gums & Chemicals
9. Amba Gums & Feeds Products
10. Ingredion Incorporated
11. Vasundhara Gums & Chemicals
12. The Lucid Group
13. Hindustan Gums & Chemicals Ltd.
14. Guangrao Liuhe Chemical Co. Ltd.

Recent Developments

• In March 2019, the leading guar gum powder manufacturer, VIKAS WSP Ltd, was granted permission to export their DP guar gum products for fertilizer stabilizing applications.
• In 2017, Ingredion Incorporated (United States) acquired TIC Gums Incorporated. (U.S.). This acquisition helped Ingredion Inc. strengthen its product portfolio as TIC Gums (U.S.), which offers advanced texture systems to the food & beverage industry, including a wide variety of guar gum products.
• In December 2016, the global leader in ingredient solutions, Ingredion Incorporated, acquired all outstanding shares of TIC Gums Incorporated. TIC Gums was permitted to use a variety of ingredients derived from agriculture, such as guar gum and acacia. These natural ingredients serve as the basis for innovative solutions and permit clean-label reformulation.
• In June 2015, Expansion Lucid Group began processing guar splits at its new guar splitting plant in Meglasiya, Rajasthan. This backward integration allowed Lucid Group to control its supply chain completely.
• In September 2014, International Finance Corporation invested $27.5 million in Lucid Colloids, an India-based guar gum producer. This investment supported the company's plans to establish two guar splitting plants in Rajasthan, a research and development center, and a guar gum plant in Gujarat.

Segmentation

1. By Grade
   1. Pharmaceutical
   2. Industrial
   3. Food
2. By Function
   1. Stabilizers and Emulsifiers
   2. Thickening and Gelling Agents
   3. Binders
   4. Friction Reducers
3. By Application
   1. Oils and Gas
   2. Food and Beverage
   3. Pharmaceuticals and Cosmetics