Solidity Trade has released it’s Fall 2009 informational brochure containing important information about or Organic Unrefined Shea Butter, including our pricing and certification. Please feel free to click on the following link to take a look at our brochure: ST Brochure Fall 2009 Organic Unrefined Shea Butter
“Bringing new solutions to old problems in the shea butter industry market.”
Below is a press release on the partnership between Solidity Trade and Sekaf.
Sekaf Ghana LTD, a Ghanaian company specializing in production of organic and conventional shea butter and manufacturing of the shea product line, Tama, has announced the inception of a long-term business partnership with Solidity Trade. Solidity Trade is a US-based marketing and venture capital firm working with various institutions to secure trade relationships with West African commodities, particularly in the agro-sector. The formal collaboration represents a seamless convergence of the companies’ paralleling missions to address poverty in West Africa with market orientated solutions that develop the creative entrepreneurial capacities of the local people and their economies. While enabling Sekaf to primarily occupy in its core operations, the production of a cosmetic grade shea butter and development of shea based beauty and personal care products, Solidity Trade acts as the effective marketing force needed to give the company its global reach into the most competitive of markets.
Managing director of Sekaf, Senyo Kpelly, started negotiations with Solidity Trade’s CEO, Lam Tran, in 2008 under a mutual recognition of the critical role of the shea industry in bringing about profitable and responsible development to the region. The two met again while presenting at the International Shea Conference held in Ouagadougou earlier this year and finally discussed the formalization of a long term partnership in March 2009. A Memorandum of Understanding was therefor signed in March 2009 signifying a contractual relationship for coordination of their professional efforts. The quantifiable benefits of this partnership are evident, where Sekaf’s shea butter exports have increased threefold in this time.
On the topic of partnership, Sekaf’s Senyo Kpelly says, “This is a strategic move on the part of Sekaf to expand our operations originating at the community level, create more jobs and increase our production capacities to be more competitive in the global marketplace. Working with Solidity Trade is a perfectly complimentary match to realize our future growth. We aim to be an industry leader that can help educate the consumer base on issue of shea quality, a factor we believe is critical in defining the future of Africa’s shea butter industry”.
Mr. Tran of Solidity Trade similarly recognizes the significance of this relationship in the global shea butter industry and the potential impact it can have on west African economies. His statement regarding the partnership with Sekaf is below:
“By linking the international markets with West African producers, SEKAF revealed to be an excellent source in the industry of shea butter and allows Solidity Trade to change the image of the West Africa by providing top notch quality shea butter to the world. The growth over the last year has been tremendous. The skills that we brought to SEKAF was a perfect match with Solidity Trade in terms of cooperation among the decision makers. This match is critical in reshaping the shea butter industry and create more jobs every year and reduce the poverty in the rural areas of West Africa.”
The partnership is indeed an ambitious step forward for Sekaf and Solidity Trade, and a hopeful representation for the forward progression of the larger shea industry itself.
After working on several months on shea butter, Solidity Trade team has chosen to broaden its product lines for the Northern American market and will be delivering to its customers shea oil for cosmetic purpose.
Cosmetic Shea Oil is a new product of SEKAF GHANA and Solidity Trade partnership. The product will be launched in July 2009 and you can soon order some samples on Solidity Trade website.
Here are more information about shea oil :
Chemical properties :
Shea Oil is an excellent alternative to the semi-solid Shea butter in many types of cosmetic formulation for many types of cosmetic products. Shea Oil helps to protect the epidermis and maintain the integrity of the stratum corneum, thanks to its composition in Essential Fatty Acids (EFA), vitamins and unsaponifiable (7-8%) matters. Shea oil is also has a good moisturizing and skin softening effect generally associated with Shea butter.
Shea Oil can be used as an active carrier for skin care emulsions because of its lower molecular weight. The liquid physical character of Shea Oil makes it easy to formulate with, there is no need for handling solids and heating to melt the ingredient before use. Because Shea Oil is liquid at room temperature, it can be used in cold-process formulations.
Shea Oil is has a good stability versus oxidation. This character helps lower the levels of anti-oxidants contained in the finish products.Shea Oil is also a good emollient for anhydrous products where the high level of bioactive shea unsaponifiables can contribute to skin repair and soothing action.
Applications
Shea Oil is a good emollient and moisturizer in all types of skin care creams and lotions. The liquid character makes it easy to formulate emulsions with no adverse crystallization effects and a high content of the Shea butter unsaponifiables.
Shea Oil can be used in the following application:
Shea Oil can also be used as a liquid emollient in anhydrous products ranging from body butters to lip balms and colour cosmetics. Shea Oil is also a good ingredient for hair care applications where 0.5-1 % addition in a conditioner may help to improve gloss and moisture retention in the hair.
Solidity Trade has been invited to the Shea Global Value Chain this year in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso by one of the sponsoring company ECOCERT from the 25th to the 27th of March 2009.
In order to meet the different associations, certification agents and buyers of shea butter, Solidity Trade will assign its CEO. He will be able to answer the questions and meet the representatives of the different companies to improve some partnerships, close deals and discuss about the shea industry and its challenges, especially the economic and social impact of the shea industry on the lives of the women in poor rural areas of West Africa.
Within 4 years the Shea industry has effectively doubled in size, which is great news for the West African markets. To address this growth, USAID’s West Africa Trade Hub is holding a conference in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso at the end of March to explore investment opportunities and discuss challenges and strategies for this growing market.
To learn more about the Shea 2009 conference, please visit:
www.globalshea.org
Welcome to the official blog of Solidity Trade:
This blog is aimed at keeping you informed on news concerning our company, our work and the progress we are making in developing Africa with a market-oriented approach.
Solidity Trade has the mission to source West African commodities and secure the logistics to build a solid relationship with international buyers. Our purpose is to help West African producers and their communities to market and sell their raw materials while meeting international standards of quality.
In the spirit of this mission, company founders Lam Tran and Fabien Nervais teamed to work on a project aimed at developing a product inherent to the African landscape — Ghanaian unrefined shea butter. Unrefined shea butter is a useful product that has several applications in cooking, hair, and skin care.
Increasingly, international companies are incorporating shea butter into their products such as shampoo, soaps, or lotions. Shea butter has tremendous potential for growth, however, this potential hasn’t adequately been addressed through Africa. The lack of availability in capital and the difficulty to access international markets haven’t allowed local African businesses to grow to their full potential and go beyond their own local market in a profitable way.
Based on this fact, Solidity Trade has developed a new business model that serves a dual purpose:
For more information on an example company we have helped to market unrefined shea butter in the Northern America, please download the following PDF: Unrefined Shea Butter
