Shea Butter: Fair Trade, Unrefined Shea Butter and African Black Soap

We do not hire based on age, ethnicity, sex, color or religion. We work to improve the positions of disadvantaged groups, such as women and ethnic minorities. Also, we pay our members a salary that is 30% higher than the national standard and provide them with a pension plan, vacation, sick and family leave, and overtime. Our members are free to organize and are provided with education and training on how to do this. Our work environment is comfortable, well ventilated and lit, with potable water provided to all members. Finally, our revenues are invested back into the community as educational scholarships, ecological restoration projects, and renewable energy programs.

Our members undergo extensive training in all aspects of our business, including production, marketing and management. The purpose of this training is to enable them to begin their own businesses in the future. A percentage of our revenues are dedicated to educational scholarships for local students to study within Togo and abroad.

We plan to switch to renewable energy sources for all our energy needs as our organization becomes established. These include solar powered grinders, presses, and office equipment. We have also converted our diesel powered trucks to use vegetable oil, which in our case is unmarketable shea butter. We do not condone the use of chemicals and actions that harm other species. We have designed our production facilities and harvesting practicies to minimize our impact on the natural environment.

FAIR TRADE FEDERATION - an association of fair trade wholesalers, retailers, and producers whose members are committed to providing fair wages and good employment opportunities to economically disadvantaged artisans and farmers worldwide.
AFRICA FAIR TRADE COUNCIL - a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness in Africa and the rest of the world about the importance of fair trade. It also advises new businesses in Africa on how to incorporate fair trade practices into their business plans so that they can support the growth of their communities. FTA is currently working on a fair trade shea butter project to promote the importance of supporting fairly traded shea butter as the popularity of this African indigenous commodity increases worldwide. Their hope is that raising awareness will help shea butter producers realize a greater percentage of the final retail sales of their product.
GLOBAL ALLIANCE FOR COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT - GACE is a non profit organization established by the Agbanga Karite Group, Alaffia Fair Trade Shea Butter, and individual volunteers from around the world. The mission of GACE is to empower African communities through the advancement of fair trade, education, sustainable living, and gender equality.