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Ghana shea butter is among the most common shea butter used in the natural hair movement today. Ghana is among Africa’s major producers of Shea butter.

Shea butter is a natural fat obtained from the fruit of Shea tree. (vitellaria paradoxa).The Shea tree is an indigenous African tree which initially grew in the wild. It starts bearing fruits when it is 15 years old and reaches its peak production at 30 years. Its fruit, Shea nut kernel contains almost 50 % fat or oil which, when extracted, is called shea butter. Ghana shea is widely used in the manufacture of beauty products and hair skincare. It is usually ivory in colour when freshly harvested but fades in colour after processing. Shea butter is also edible and used in food preparation

Shea butter farming was introduced in Ghana in the 14th century by Arab traders. Since then it has been a commercial source of livelihood to Ghanaians till today. Shea farming has led to the formation of women empowerment groups in Ghana as collection and processing is exclusively done by women and girls. Unlike many cash crops, women control revenues from the sale of shea butter which they use to take care of their family and other domestic needs.

There are four types of shea butter. All types come from the same necessary shea nut processing. The difference arises from additional processes such as filtering, removing impurities and smell, changing composition and altering the colour

1. Raw Shea butter: This type of shea has a characteristic smoky smell which comes from roasting. It is usually deep yellow or even greenish if the processed shea nuts were not fully ripe. It contains most impurities
2. Unrefined shea butter: This is very similar to raw shea butter; however, the difference arises in the filtering method. Unrefined shea butter does not contain any preservatives or chemicals. It is usually beige in colour and has a nutty scent
3. Refined shea butter: This usually undergoes filtering processes and odour removing. It contains some perfumes and preservatives and has few nutrients than raw and unrefined shea butter.
4. Ultra refined shea butter: This goes through at least two filtering processes which results in a change in composition. During the refining process, it loses its nutrients and sometimes its consistency is liquid. It is very white and mostly used for cosmetic purposes.

The shea trees require an annual rainfall of between 400mm to 1800mm. They are also able to withstand a long period of drought. The shea nut tree starts producing trees after 15 to 20 years. However, its productivity period is up to 50 years. The trees can live up to 400 years. Shea nut tree flowers are also a source of food, They can be harvested and fried to make delicious stews. Fertilized flowers mature into fruits with green skin that is sweet and high in vitamins. A single tree produces up to 20kgs of fruits per harvest. The nuts inside those fruits weigh around 3 to 4 kgs and contain 1.5 to 2 kgs of shea butter.

Extracting the shea butter from the nuts is a long and tedious process. The nuts are cleaned then boiled long enough to prevent germination. They are then roasted or dried in the sun for 5 to 10 days. The shells are cracked and the seeds removed by hand then sundried again. After drying the kernels are ground into a paste using mortar and pestle. The paste is then boiled in water to separate oils and fats. This process is then repeated severally, and butter collected graded. Final processed product os shea butter is packaged in greaseproof papers that are leak proof or plastic containers of different sizes ready for sale.

In 2013, Ghana shea butter export volumes amounted to a total of 1000 metric tons. Most of its exports go to  Europe and also other African countries.

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