Shea tree

The shea tree is the treasure of northern Togo – women make butter from its nuts, and the country exports them to the food and cosmetics industries.

The shea tree is a savanna tree usually growing to 10–15 m, with thick, fissured, fire-resistant bark and leathery leaves clustered at the tips of the shoots. The fruits have sweet, edible flesh, and their large seeds, once roasted, ground and mixed with water, yield shea butter. This fat is used for cooking, skin care and as a cocoa butter substitute in chocolate. The trees only start fruiting after ten to twenty years.

Significance in the country

Shea nuts and butter are among Togo’s important exports, and gathering and processing them is a traditional occupation of women in the northern regions. The trees are spared on cropland, creating characteristic parkland savannas.

Where it grows

The savannas of the centre and north of the country: the Savanes, Kara and Centrale regions, and occasionally the northern part of the Plateaux Region.

More: Wikipedia (en) Wikipedia (pl)