Shea is an important food crop in the Sahel Region where it mostly grows. Here alternative employments opportunities are few, and yields are unpredictable. The Shea nuts and other products from the tree provide an important part of the family income. Shea butter also acts as one of the major sources of cooking oil in areas where it grows.
Over the past decades trade in Shea butter has been on the rise because of increased demands in the European Union, Japan, India, Canada and the United States. It is worth nothing that while importations of Shea into the European Union are both for food products and cosmetics, importations in to the USA is solely for use in cosmetics. This has had significant positive consequences on the local women who are the main stake holders (95%) in the processing of Shea. With the integration of non-governmental organizations and cooperative groups in the processing chain, women can earn higher prices for their shea products because of improved quality and quantity. For example, a kg of certified organic shea butter today sells at 2.75 USD up from 1.5 USD. This has a positive effect on the social status of the woman as she can now take part in house hold management and decision making.
Secondly, several communities benefit from health services and insurance schemes provided by semi processing factories installed for shea processing. In addition, shea is fast becoming an export crop in many West African countries. For example, shea nuts and its products are listed among the top ten non-traditional exports of Ghana. The shea industry, still in its infant stage, is an attractive business entity earning about 30 million USD of foreign exchange for the Ghanaian national economy. This amount is expected to triple when the shea production potentials in Ghana are fully exploited. In Burkina Faso, it is the fourth most important export crop after gold, cotton and livestock and makes a contribution of about 6 million USD to the national economy. Today the shea tree is the second most important oil crop in Africa after the palm nut tree. See more Here
image credit: shea butter processor. With excerpts from 'OIL CROPS AND SUPPLY CHAIN IN AFRICA'.
