Shea butter is seen by many as a miracle ingredient in soaps and skincare products, and it is. But it can be confusing too. There are a few ‘definitive’ classifications and grading systems, most developed by one group or another and lacking a generally accepted standardization. Many terms are used to describe shea butter and many who sell it don’t… [read more]
Whipping the Shea
Whipping Shea Butter (not the whipping you think!) Your shea needs to be whipped like this before you can make your lovely whipped body butters and other products Whipping (or churning) Shea Butter is a key step in making it. And it is hard work. After the Shea Nuts (Seeds) are crushed, roasted and then ground to release the oils… [read more]
How Hand-Crafted Shea Butter is Made
Making Shea Butter – from fruit to butter Watch, listen and learn how Baraka Shea Butter is made. This video takes you through the entire process, starting in the wild shea forest and finishing with beautiful, hand-crafted shea butter. Learn about the steps in the process and all the hard work that goes into making shea butter. #KnowAboutShea – a… [read more]
Second Grind: Releasing the Oils
Second Grind: Releasing the OilsAfter the shea nuts are crushed and roasted they are carried back to the grinder where magic happens. One of the most amazing, mind-blowing parts of how shea butter is made. Dry, mealy material goes into a grinder and comes out as an oily, viscous substance, nearly ready to release the magic of shea butter. Crushing… [read more]
Baraka Shea Butter Producers
Meet the women who make Baraka Shea Butter. Baraka Shea Butter is well-known for its quality. The credit for the quality goes to the hard-working women who make it. On this video you can see about 150 of them.
[watch video]Tabiasi Women’s Enterprise Centre
A live walkthrough of the Tabiasu Women’s Enterprise Centre with Alfred Akolgo, Baraka’s Country Manager. You can see the women using the facility for the preparation of Shea Nuts (seeds) as we discuss the centre, why we built it, how it will be used and the impact it is already having.
[watch video]From the Shea Forest: Picking Shea nuts (seeds)
Shot live in the Shea Forest you can see how the women gather the fallen shea fruit and nuts, the first step in making Baraka Shea Butter. See the women in action, watch the young boys climbing shea trees and shaking the fruit off so the women can pick it.
[watch video]Live with Baraka from HSCG 2019 in Dallas
Livestream interview with Wayne and Gifty of Baraka Shea Butter from the 2019 Handcrafted Soap and Cosmetics Guild Annual Conference in Dallas, Texas.
[watch video]Shea Nut Roasters: Safer, Healthier, Easier
Making handmade shea butter is a lot of work. Using shea nut roasters helps make it a bit easier, and a lot safer and healthier. And does a better job.
[watch video]Baraka TV: Interview with Amina and Lillian
“Aunty” Amina Yussif has worked with Baraka for over a decade, training and supporting women in communities throughout Ghana’s Upper West Region. A year ago she was joined by Mwintoma Lilian and together they are key members of Baraka’s Ghana team.
[watch video]Baraka TV: Alfred Interview
Alfred Akolgo has led Baraka’s Ghana operations since about 2015, working with “Aunty” Amina and recently Mwintoma Lilian as they worked with hard-working women in Ghana’s Upper West Region to produce, package and export Baraka Shea Butter.
[watch video]Baraka TV: Zenabo Interview
Zenabo Imoro is one of the leaders of the Kperisi Shea Butter group. In this clip she discusses the care that goes into making Baraka Shea Butter, the long-standing relationship between the hard-working women of northern Ghana
[watch video]Producer Interview with Zenabo Imoro
A discussion with Zenabo Imoro, one of the leaders of the groups of hard-working women who make Baraka Shea Butter. She discusses how they make Baraka Shea Butter, how they focus on quality and the impact that Baraka’s purchases
[watch video]Using everything- Fuel from Shea Butter residue
Using everything. Hand-crafting pure, unrefined shea butter leaves behind residue that is not wasted. The hard-working women that make @Baraka Shea Butter mold this residue into fuel balls that they dry and use for cooking and even sometimes for making their next batch of Shea Butter!
[watch video]From Our Hands: The Baraka Shea Butter Song and Dance
The joy of hand-crafting @Baraka Shea Butter is celebrated in this video as the hard-working women who make it have just created a new song and dance to celebrate their joy. The joy and their celebration are the direct
[watch video]Using shells from shea nuts for fuel
Nothing is wasted. Preparing Shea Nuts (seeds) for making Shea Butter includes removing the husks. These husks are not just discarded. Watch as @Baraka’s Women’s Development Coordinator @Amina Yusiff explains how the women use the husks for fuel, saving resources and money
[watch video]Shea Tree Regeneration and Conservation
Shea Trees grow wild and regenerate naturally. I’m often asked about how many seeds are left behind to regenerate and grow. Most of them are. Research estimate suggest that at least 85% of the Shea Seeds that fall from Shea Trees are unpicked and available to germinate.
[watch video]Community Certified Fair Trade Interview
Watch an interview with Zenabu Imoru, a leader of the Kperisi women’s group and the community Chief where they discuss their working relationship with Baraka Shea Butter and the Community Certified Fair-Trade certification they provided. Sub-titled in English.
[watch video]The Story of Baraka Shea Butter
A short animation to help you understand where Baraka Shea Butter comes from. From the shea trees in the northern Savannah to the pure, unrefined, hand-crafted shea butter made by the hard working women of
[watch video]Baraka Shea Butter: No waste from making it
Waste Not. That is how we do it. @Amina Yussif, explains the care and strategy that goes into ensuring that nothing is wasted when making Baraka Shea Butter. She explains how the hard-working women who make
[watch video]