Africa produces approximately 1,760,000 metric tons (MT) of raw shea nuts a year, and historically, most of this stayed within the African continent to supply domestic demand. The shea export market traditionally traded raw shea kernels rather than shea butter or other finished products.
What are shea nuts used for?
Shea nuts are usually processed and used for Shea butter extraction which have wide applications in the cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industries . It is used as cocoa butter equivalent (CBE) and enhancer in chocolate manufacturing, providing greater stability and extended shelf life [6,9]. … …
How is shea oil extracted?
As a result, many shea producers are adopting more mechanized solutions to improve quality and yield. Larger processors use mechanical extraction equipment to recover more oil efficiently. Screw press expellers physically crush the shea kernels to squeeze out shea oil from the solid meal, which exits the expeller as a cake.
Does shea butter need solvent extraction?
For these reasons, solvent extraction is generally not preferred for shea butter extraction—especially in food and cosmetic markets where consumers seek natural, organic ingredients. What is shea oil? Traditional water extraction, mechanical expeller pressing, and solvent extraction yield shea butter.
How is shea butter extracted?
method of shea butter extraction. A suc cessfully extraction efficienc y. The method was f irst tested in women processors in the region. The principle of content (4 6%) into paste using a local plate mill. The extraction process without any heat treatment. The predetermined amount of hot water. The moisturi zed
How hexane is used in shea butter extraction?
The changed during the chemical extraction process. For market. A dditionally, hexane extraction removes most if not all of the hea ling properties from shea butter. Hexane that of gasoline. Its use for shea butter extraction equipped chemical laborator y (ASBI, 20 04 ). Thus, the Larbi, 2013). then the release of the oil (Pere z et al., 2013).