Africa Women's Shea Butter Fund

My name is Dr. Theresa Harris. I am clinical research doctor located in Columbus, GA. In 2010,I started a small cosmetic company based on shea butter based products after I multiple attempts to heal my severe eczema.  On a trip to New York with my best friend, I accidently went out without my standard medication and developed a huge rash due to the heat.  We were somewhere in Harlem and I couldn't find a pharmacy to get my prescription transferred.  In route looking for a pharmacy we found a street vendor selling shea butter. I purchased the shea butter and  put it on my skin.  I did not realize until that evening back at our hotel, that I never did find  the  pharmacy and my skin irritation was  improved. Within days of using the  shea butter on my skin, my eczema of several years was completely gone. Over the years I had been subjected to mutliple medications and many self-developed concoctions.  I became a believer of shea butter and wanted to know more about it. There was little information and education on shea  butter. So being a research doctor, I wanted to know the science and chemistry of the butter known as "women's gold".  My reseach led me  to the sub-saharan desert of African where most of the shea butter is produced.

Once I understood the science and chemistry, I began making products for me and my family who also had sensitive  skin.  I learned that most products  produced  here in the  USA had very little shea butter and did not treat me skin condition when I applied it to my skin. I didn't understand why  the products I purchased did not heal like the shea butter I had purchased on the streets of NY. Here, is where I began to learn the truth about cosmetics.

As a drug researcher, I am intimately aware of the drugs that we put on the market.  After all, I have helped to many of these drugs on the market as a Clinical Research Scientist.  But, I had no clue of the health and beauty market's deception.  Many active ingredients that are  known to help treat the skin and body are adulturated, and placed in products in very small quantities.  This why my alarm call.  In order to keep my eczema at bay or in remission I had to find a solution.  My journey led me to making my own products. I did not set out to start a company, I only wanted to take advantage of the  healing properties of shea butter. 

Within a few weeks of  making my own shea butter products, my family and I experience true healing.  I began compounding shea butter with other oils that had therapuetic properties along with quality essential oils.  I, then began giving it to my patients and they too were  experiencing relief. Within months, I was spending my weekend my products  for whomever had skin conditions like mine and  my family for free.  I was convinced by a friend that I should start a company.  I still didn't know much about cosmetics at all, but I had saturated myself with everything shea butter.

As my products began to become popular, I received a phone call from  a pioneer of shea butter, Dr. Samuel Hunter MPH, MD.  He had found me through research on the internet and asked for a conversation.  Four hours later, I knew all the missing information about shea butter. You see, he had authored books on shea butter, held an annual convention on shea butter, taught the best extraction methods and told me  that the butter I was selling was contaminated although it provided healing to my skin.   I was shocked and this is where  I thought that we would part ways.  But, Dr. Hunter looked me in my eyes and said, Dr.  Harris, you will do great things with shea butter and you will change this next generation's thinking.  That was five years ago.

Today, I'm actively involved in creating and developing shea butter for confectionary uses, industrial uses as well as medicinal uses.  The benefits of shea butter has not been fully recognized.  To this end, I have dedicated my life to shea development.

In 2015, after five years of working with The American Shea Butter Institute and shea producing countries, I decided I wanted  to get into the social and political aspects of this cash crop. I was naive.  I was a novice.  I wanted first hand information of the stories that I heard when delegations from Africa would come to our conventions.  I would talk to these women and they would tell me the horror stories of how the butter is extracted in dangerous terrain often infested with poisonous snakes.  How they had to walk miles to the bush to gather the nuts, with little to no  tools at all.  I felt sorry.  I wanted to do something to help them.  In my ignorance, I was thinking that  I could just help them with getting tools. But, the problem was much bigger than that.  These women were experiencing rape.  For that, I didn't have a tool or the education to help them to fight.

The women who produce shea nuts are disproportionately taken advantaged of.  From  the time the  shea fruit is gathered  to the market place, the  women have  been political and sytematically raped.  The women are told that the quality of the nuts are inferior so that they have to sell the nuts to cooperative groups who purchase the nuts for chocolate.  Shea Butter is a cocoa butter equivalents which simply means that the shea nut can be substituted for cocoa due to the chemical profile.  The problem with this model  is that the women get less value for nuts  for chocolate than they can for shea butter.

Only recently had there been a drive to educate the women to produce quality shea butter.  As much as  the government would like us to believe that quality is the problem for shea butter production it is not.  The government of shea  producing countries can educate and provide clean water, equipment and  tools to help them.

In 2015, I pointed the finger at everyone and did not realize that I was a silent collaborator.  I had a shea butter based company and was reaping benefits off the  back of these women as well.  My purchasing of their shea butter was to my benefit not there's.  At the 2015 ASBI Convention, it was clear to me that I needed to do more and I needed to wake up.

I began to find out what would  truly help the women.  While our convention educated the women on creating quality shea butter,  none of the shea producing women could  afford to come here and  learn.  The people who attended the American Shea Butter Conference  were mainly wholesalers of shea butter.  Many of which who do not share the same color of those producing the shea butter.

I hope  to organize a group with people who truly had feet on the ground.  I learned  that there is no fair trade when it comes to shea butter.  Our big corporations are the culprits who unfairly pay the wages the women need for basic survival.   I learned  many of the companies that I buy supplies  from for  my company who believe they too are doing fair trade agreements and not aware of what  really is going  on with the women shea producers.  If 90% of shea nuts are used to make  chocolate and the other 10% is for shea butter and shea cooking oil.  That mean less than 10% is shea butter and shea butter not the  nuts  is the  true cash crop.  The rural women can make up to 10 times the amount of  money if they produce shea butter rather than sell the nuts for chocolate.  So, please help me  to understand if any us here in the US can say we practice fair trade when it comes to shea  butter.

If you have read this  much of my journey, then you may surmise that I am  quite passionate about this.  I have  organized a company to help educate, empower and provide resources to shea producing women.  I specifically,  represent 10,000 women villagers who need access to resources.  We have begun education programs for producing Grade A shea butter.  This year represents the first time  the curriculum is being taught to these women in the bush.  While, we are excited about the education, raw materials and equipment are still needed.   I have found a tool here in the USA that greatly aid these  women in  shea production.  The tool is a pecan harvester which can be used for the shea nuts.  The women also need machetes, boots and gloves.  These are basic tools  in our country that we have in abundance.

I am raising money to purchase and/or deliver some of these items to Burkino Faso and  Cote d Ivoire, Africa which is the northern region of Ivory Coast.  I am planning a trip in September 22- October 3, 2016 with a small  delegation and I have estimated the expenses for 10 days for a delegation of 3 people as well as freight for all the supplies to be estimated in access of $25,000.

Here is the breakdown of cost for  a facility in Burkino Faso with Empower Village

The facilities primary equipment package includes the following components:

• Stainless steel hammer crusher $1,172.00
• Stainless steel roaster $1,534.00
• Grinding mill $1,003.00
• Mechanical stainless steel churn $1,770.00
• Manual filter press $ 840.00
• Automatic filler with manual weld sealer $ 680.00
• Two 10 HP 50 HZ electric motors $1,298.00
• Motor mounts & accessories $ 402.00
• Motor setup costs $ 300.00
• Misc. accessories & equipment $4,000.00
• Installation & basic equipment training $ 450.00

Total equipment package $13,449.00

Shea Butter manufacturing training $ 500.0