The desire to add value to under-used agricultural
commodities has led us to search for new uses for pectin,
a co-product of fruit juice, sunflower oil and sugar from
sugar beet. Pectin is a major structural component of cell
walls consisting mainly of partially methyl esterified
poly(a(1 ! 4)d-galacturonic acid) containing rhamnose
inserts in the backbone and neutral sugar side chains. It is
both water soluble and biodegradable.