It all began in 1822 with the founding of the first Odet paper mill by René Corentin Bolloré (1793-1838) and his older brother Guillaume Claude Bolloré, laying the foundation for a line of Bolloré “paper-makers” that was to extend over 6 generations. From the beginning OCB has exclusively used pure natural arabic gum extracted directly from African Acacia trees. Acacia gum is an extract from two species of acacia trees (Acacia senegal and Acacia seyal) that grow in semi-desert conditions in Africa. Acacia gum is produced by making incisions in the bark of the trees (tapping). The sap forms nodules which are harvested to be sorted out, cleaned and processed into kibbled Acacia gum.