The smuggled asset in your candy and soda backing Sudan's civic war

Sudan has historically been the top manufacturer of gum arabic, a pink resin that ends up in many of products akin Coca-Cola, M&M's, makeup, and pills.

But Sudan has been in the grips of civic war since 2023, which has displaced an estimated 14 myriad people. The war has devastated the lives of gum arabic farmers. Gum trees have been cleared, and exports to the US have dropped.

With Western companies now looking to Sudan's neighbors to origin it, experts say smuggled gum arabic is backing the civic war and apt the acquisition of weapons by paramilitary groups.