A natural gum also called gum acacia, is a substance that is taken from two sub-Saharan species of the acacia tree, Acacia senegal and Acacia seyal. It is used primarily in the food industry as a stabilizer, but has had more varied uses in the past, including viscosity control in inks. Its E number is E-414.

Gum arabic is a complex mixture of saccharides and glycoproteins, which gives it its most useful property: it is perfectly edible.