The shea nut harvest season begins in May with traditional festivities and lasts until October. As soon as the shea fruits have reached maturity, they naturally detach from the trees. Women from the surrounding villages collect these wild fruits from the bushes and take them to their homes, where they remove the green, edible shell. The nuts are then dried in the sun and packed in 80-kilogram sacks for transportation to the oil mill. The dried nuts are storable and can be kept for months. Once they arrive at the oil mills, the nuts are pressed into shea butter and prepared for shipping in large containers or ISO tanks, each holding 22 tons. As the nuts are processed directly in the oil mills in the region of origin, the added value created remains local and thus helps to improve living conditions in terms of nutrition and income. In addition, the women who collect the nuts receive a salary that is above average, which makes a significant contribution to their families' income.

The UEBT (Union for Ethical Bio Trade) is a non-profit organization dedicated to ethical trade in natural resources. Certification by UEBT certifies that products have been purchased with respect for people and the environment. UEBT verifies the extent to which the procurement practices of raw materials serve the well-being of people and the preservation of biodiversity. To this end, it defines specific guidelines for the procurement systems of companies and their suppliers. The sourcing system refers to the collection, cultivation or harvesting of the raw materials used in the products. Gustav Heess is proud to meet these high standards when sourcing shea butter. We have had UEBT-certified shea butter in our range since September 2019.