Karite, nkuto, galam or shea butter is a fat that comes from the seed of the shea nut, whose trees grow wildly along West and Central Africa. The trees only start bearing fruit after 15-20 years and reach maturity at 45 years. They keep bearing fruit for up to 200 years so it’s no wonder you won’t find many shea tree plantations. The patience it would take for a farmer to cultivate these plus nature’s abundance of them has ensured that the supply still outweighs the demand. Still, picking and processing shea nuts is big business in Africa.

Globally, the demand for shea butter is growing. The global shea butter market is valued at US$2.75 billion and expected to reach US$5.58 billion by 2033. Ghana is the main commercial supplier of both shea butter and shea nuts.

Uses for shea butter

For centuries, West Africans have used shea butter for cooking and grooming purposes.

Today, it’s a global commodity that is widely used across the cosmetic industry, but also in confectionery (as an alternative to cocoa butter) and pharmaceutical industries (as an excipient for

ointment).

(read the full story in issue 07)

Photo credits: Alamy

Sources: Future Markets Insights, Shea butter market.
Stellenbosch University, Investigating the sustainability of the shea industry among rural women in Northern Ghana.