Fantastic Article on impact of Shea Butter production on Local Women and Wildlife

cerinthe · ‎03-10-2010

Great article in Bird Life about the impact of Shea Butter production on wildlife and people. (It's primarily used now as a cocoa butter substitute and seen the most growth in that area, not cosmetics, which is about 10% of the production.)

Shea butter is my favorite so I had to read it: You can read the article here.

It basically discusses the current issues: women don't own the shea butter farms, just work them, and aren't good at negotiating price, etc., the shea butter trees are becoming a monoculture, reducing the ability of other native bird species to survive, and crops around these shea butter belts, are not attracting pollinators - did you know shea butter trees rely on pollination to produce nuts, much like almonds?! I had no idea... and because there are no bees being supported and attracted, the production of shea nuts is down due to lack of regular numbers of pollinators.

Really interesting article about where and how the products we use come from and the challenges in producing them. This pilot program they discuss hopes to attack these issues head-on, resulting in a much more sustainable production of shea butter while increasing the health and ability of local peoples to survive.

Again, highly recommend reading this!

SilleeMee · ‎05-22-2016

A very similar situation exists for palm oil farms in SE Asia, only worse. Palm oil can be found in almost everything we eat and in some cosmetics. The farming is devastating beyond words.

cerinthe · ‎03-10-2010

Yes!! So glad you brought that up, I almost mentioned it too... I don't want to bore people BUT here's one of the best ways to educate yourself about what the issues are in addition to making good choices re: Palm oil:

Get the great (free!) app put out by the Cheyenne Mountain zoo called "Sustainable Palm Oil shopping" which is the best app in the US to shop smart and education yourself. There are some others, but I thought that one was excellent.

(I also love Dr. Bronner's soaps who are VERY open about their habits of purchasing and supporting carefully sustainably grown products, including palm oil.)

SilleeMee · ‎05-22-2016

@cerinthe wrote:
Yes!! So glad you brought that up, I almost mentioned it too... I don't want to bore people BUT here's one of the best ways to educate yourself about what the issues are in addition to making good choices re: Palm oil:

Get the great (free!) app put out by the Cheyenne Mountain zoo called "Sustainable Palm Oil shopping" which is the best app in the US to shop smart and education yourself. There are some others, but I thought that one was excellent.

(I also love Dr. Bronner's soaps who are VERY open about their habits of purchasing and supporting carefully sustainably grown products, including palm oil.)

@cerinthe,

Wow, really?? Cheyenne Mtn Zoo?? I worked there for four years many moons ago. Help raise some orphaned baby orangs amongst other little babies. I will check out that app. thank you.