Shea Butter A Guide to Production and Marketing - AGOA Export ...

Peace Corps Ghana Version 1, March 2008
percentage of the profit (I suggest 5% - 10%). Finally, the administrator
should be trusted by the women and able to communicate effectively with the
women in order to set realistic expectations.
• Be prepared for the unexpected and possible major issue to occur, such as a
possible loss on a particular order.
• If a firm will pay 50% (for example) of the money up front so the women can
get started, monitor if the women are starting to use there own money to
complete the order and how much so they don’t exceed an amount that would
eliminate their profit. Also, monitor what a the nuts are yielding in butter by
weighing them on initial production. You may want to double check the
figures as you continue production.
• 1 rounded market bowl of nuts (a bowl of nuts that are piled above the rim of
the calabash) produces approximately 1 kilogram of butter
• 30 rounded bowls of nuts equals one bag of nuts
• 40 flat bowls of nuts (a bowl of nuts where they level the nuts off to the equal
the rim of the calabash) equals one bag of nuts
• 1 bag of nuts produces approximately 30 kilograms of butter
Be sure to measure and check your local measuring system.
Break-Even Analysis from a UNDP-JICA study near Tamale
(Personal communication via Oliver Hoellige (DED Wa NBSSI Regional Office)
Preliminary findings:
Sagnarigu:
I started the study around May-June this year when price of shea nuts is GHc 20 per
jute bag (between 90-94 kg). Daily wage rate was computed at US$1=GHc 0.92.
Semi-mechanized processing. Yield=40%.
Break-even is GHc 0.97/kg of shea butter.
Walewale:
The same activities were conducted in Walewale (100km further north of Tamale)
around the same time. The price of a jute sack of nuts is GHc 25 per jute bag
(between 92-95 kg). Semi-mechanized processing. Yield=33%.
Break-even is GHc 1.63/kg shea butter.
This higher break-even price might be attributed to transportation costs of firewood,
water, and milling station.
Note: Break-even price for unrefined shea butter in these two examples does not
include packaging, marketing expenses, etc.
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