Ban On Shea Butter: Almustapha To Establish Factory In Kano
President Bola Tinubu’s recent ban on exportation of shea butter may have started yielding positive results.
Entrepreneur, Alhaji Hadi Al-Mustapha, has announced plans to take advantage of the ban by setting up a shea butter processing factory in the commercial city.
President Tinubu had last week approved a 6-month temporary ban on the export of raw shea nut to curb informal trade, boost local processing, protect and grow Nigeria’s shea industry.
The ban, which is with immediate effect, is subject to review on expiration and specifically aimed at boosting Nigeria’s shea value chain to generate around $300m annually in the short term.
Alhaji Al-Mustapha, CEO Harris Industries, told THE WHISTLER in a telephone conversation that he planned to set up a shea factory.
“I intend to take advantage of the ban because it is a very good policy that will encourage local processing and create jobs,” Al-Mustapha said.
The businessman disclosed that the ban has encouraged him to invest in a processing plant, and urged the government to sustain the policy to encourage more investors.
“I urge other businessmen to invest in the shea butter value chain to create jobs for our people instead of exporting the raw product,” he stated.
Exports of Shea nuts, which are used in cosmetics and confectionery, have equally been banned in other West African countries.
Following last week’s ban, the price of the nuts reportedly dropped by 33% from a few days earlier, according to Rildwan Bello, chief executive officer of Lagos-based Vestance, a consultancy that tracks agricultural commodity prices.
The Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has welcomed the ban on exportation of raw Shea butter and announced the state’s plan to launch 50-ton Shea processing factory in Kaiama to stimulate economic activities in Kwara North.
“Locating the factory within Kaiama puts the people at the centre of local Shea production, ensures local ownership of benefits, such as job creation, reduced post harvest losses, and value retention in Kaiama,” the governor had said in a statement on Tuesday.
“This project exemplifies backward and forward integration as it combines raw material sourcing, processing and market access in one locality.”
Kwara and Niger, among others, are the hearts of Shea nut trees in Nigeria. Kwara North alone is credited with over 250,000 nature and producing trees spread across 6,000 hectares of land.
Ban On Shea Butter: Almustapha To Establish Factory In Kano is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
