Guar gum in dog food

Guar gum (E412) is a thickener extracted from guar beans. It is essentially a flour that is often used in conjunction with gelling agents to enhance their gelling strength.

Guar gum is certainly a lot less contentious than the alternative cassia gum but it is not entirely without controversy with some studies suggesting that it may reduce the digestibility of the rest of the food and particularly the protein [1].

It's also important to note that according to our sources in wet pet food manufacturing, thickeners like guar gum are only ever used with gelling agents, some of which are somewhat controversial and do not need to be declared on the label. If in doubt, ask your wet food manufacturer what gelling agents they use directly.

Find foods containing Guar gum See the full Ingredient Glossary