Mustapha Umar, a Shea nut farmer based in Paikoro, Niger State, north-central Nigeria, said that many of the residents do not take into consideration the value of the tree and end up cutting some of the trees to make firewood and charcoal, which has proved to be a major problem affecting the availability of Shea nuts and butter in the state.
Is Nigeria aiming to increase export output of shea nuts & butter?
On November 12 2020, Ramatu Aliyu, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister of State, Nigeria, in an address at the third technical meeting of the National Committee on Export Promotion, disclosed that the government is targeting increasing export output of Shea nuts and Shea butter.
Can Nigeria double its shea butter production?
According to experts, Nigeria can double its shea butter production to 650,000MT for export with the domestication of the crop. In 2016, the Nigeria Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) said it had been able to reduce the long gestation period of the Karite tree from 20 to between five and seven years.
Why is shea butter important to Nigeria?
The soaring demand for Shea butter has brought to fore the necessity for Nigeria, the world¡¯s top producer, to capitalise on its unrivalled Shea nut production capacity, making it a valuable export commodity and a key component of Nigeria¡¯s diversification goal towards ensuring a sustainable economy.