India is native of guar or cluster bean where it is used as a vegetable. From hundreds of years Guar has been used as vegetable in India and Pakistan. It is also used as cattle food, and as a green manure crop in agriculture. Guar gum comes from the endosperm of the seed of the legume plant Cyamopsis tetragonoloba; an annual plant, grown in dry regions of India as a food crop for animals.
In the early 1900s it was introduced to United States by India. In U.S., most of crop is grown for a lower grade of guar gum which is extensively used in the production of many industries.
There are various grades of Guar gums pure or derivative. Guar gum is a white to creamy coloured, free flowing powder and free from extraneous matter. Its ability to suspend solids, bind water by hydrogen bonding, control the viscosity of aqueous solutions, form strong tough films have accounted for its rapid growth and use in various industries.