For many African women, shea butter is more than a beauty product; it is also a source of income. The shea tree, from which shea butter is made, is found only in East and West Africa. For thousands of years, Africans have used shea butter as a skin moisturizer, salve for wounds, and cooking oil. Now, in Accra, Ghana, a museum is shining a spotlight on this wonderful product and telling the story of the women who rely on it for survival. The Shea Butter Museum, founded in 2019, features 21 variants of the product from across different African countries. Beyond this, the museum provides an environment for visitors to experience every step that goes into the transformation of shea nuts into shea butter, from picking and roasting to grinding and whipping. Visitors describe the experience as empowering, stating that it imbues them with knowledge they wouldn’t otherwise have.
The Conversation
