200870-Article Text-503852-1-10-20201028

Creative Commons User License: CC BY-NC-ND Journal of Agricultural Extension
Abstracted by: EBSCOhost, Electronic Journals Service (EJS), Vol. 24 (4) October, 2020
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Characteristics of Shea Butter Processing in Niger State, Nigeria

https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jae.v24i4.6
Tijani Sarafat Ayanfunke

Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development, Faculty of Agriculture,
University of Ibadan, Ibadan.
Email: tsarafat@yahoo.com.
Phone: 08051370802.
Sanusi Mohammed Kabiru

Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR), Date palm Sub-station, Dutse, Jigawa
State, Nigeria.
Email: sanusimk2004@gmail.com.
Phone: 08033638872.
Abstract
The study examined the characteristics of Shea Butter processing and factors
associated with the output in Niger states, Nigeria. Two stage sampling
procedure was used to select 315 respondents. Interview schedule was used
in data collection. Data collected were analysed with percentages, Chi-
square, the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient (PPMC) and simple
regression model at α 0.05. The result revealed that the majority (80.6%) of
the respondents used semi-mechanised method in processing Shea butter.
The average unit price of Shea butter was N476.07K per Kilogramme, while
the average income was N439,650.37K per annum. Processors had low level
of accessibility to modern processing technologies (66.2%) and more than
half (64.8%) of the processors were producing at low level. Lack of credit
facilities and high cost of processing equipment were identified as severe
constraint to Shea butter processing. There were significant relationship
between level of education (χ²=11.18, p≤0.05), level of engagement (χ²=8.71,
p≤0.05), income (r=0.819, p≤0.05) and accessibility to modern Shea butter
processing technologies (r=0.164, p≤0.05) with level of Shea butter
processing output. The major determinants of Shea butter processing output
were income, household size, unit price and accessibility to modern
processing technologies. Financial institutions should provide soft loans to
Shea butter processors to acquire inputs and equipment. Similarly,
government agencies should provide Shea butter processing equipment to
the processors to improve access to the technologies that could lead to
increase Shea butter production in Niger state.
Keywords: Shea butter processing, determinants of processing output, technology
accessibility and processors.
Introduction
The Shea trees is found growing naturally in the wild dry savannah belt of West and
East Africa that spanned across 20 Sub-African countries (Sanusi, Adeloye and
Adegebo, 2017). Incidentally, Nigeria is the largest producer of Shea nuts in the
world (Food Agriculture Organisation, 2018; Akinsokeji, Tijani, Sanusi, Igene and
Orifah 2017). Shea trees are found in 21 states of the federation including the FCT
53
(NEPC, 2017). The country is expected to earn substantial foreign exchange from
the export of Shea nuts and its derivatives because of the high demand in the
international market as a result of the use of Shea butter as a substitute for Cocoa
Butter Equivalent (CBE). Western Europe industries are the main market for CBE;
however, the growth of the CBE market is attributed to new entrants into the market
from Eastern Europe, Russia, Brazil, and Oceania (Rousseau, Denis and Wardell,
2015).
Akinsokeji, et.al, (2017) reported that Shea butter processing in the country use
traditional methods that have direct influence on the quantity of butter that is
eventually produced. Tijani and Sanusi (2019) also noted that Shea nuts are
smuggled across the borders to neighbouring countries where the nuts are
transformed into other useful products, while the level of involvement in processing
activities in Nigeria is low.
Niger State is one of the leading producers of Shea butter in the country with large
number of Shea trees which is considered as a potential cash crop. Hence, Niger
State Commodity Export Promotion Council (NSCEPC) collaborated with Deutshe
Gesellschaft Fūr internationale Zusammenarrbeit (GIZ) GmbH, a German
Cooperation mission in Nigeria that facilitated different interventions in the Shea
sector, aimed at increasing Shea butter production in the state and improve the
income base of the processors as well as their social well-being (Sanusi and Tijani,
2018). Thus, how this has impacted on the processors output is yet to be
determined. The study investigated the characteristics of Shea butter processing in
Niger State, Nigeria.
The described the characteristics of Shea butter processing in Niger State, Nigeria.
The specific objectives were to:
 examine processors’ level of accessibility to modern Shea butter
processing technologies;
 determine the processors’ level of output;
 investigate the factors associated with Shea butter processing output;
and
 identify the constraints to Shea butter processing.
The study hypothesized that there is no significant association between selected
socio-economic characteristics, accessibility to modern Shea butter processing
technologies with level of processing output.
Methodology
The study was carried out in Niger State, Nigeria. Niger state is on longitude 6°.55’’
East and latitude 9°.62’’N. The Niger state is made up of 25 local government areas
(LGAs) that were divided into three senatorial districts for easy administration. The
state falls into the North-central zone of the country and is known for high population
54
of Shea butter processors in Nigeria. The population of the study was the Shea
butter processors in Niger state. Two-stage sampling procedure was used. The first
stage involved purposive selection of 35% of local government areas (LGAs) in Niger
state that were known for Shea butter production and large numbers of processors,
giving a total of nine (9) LGAs. The LGAs selected were Gbako, Lavun, Katcha,
Bida, Kotangora, Mashegu, Borgu, Wushishi and Agwara.
The second stage involved random selection of 35 processors from the list of
registered Shea butter processors in each selected LGAs to give 315 respondents
for the study. Interview schedule was administered to the respondents with the aid of
Niger State Agricultural Mechanisation Development Agency (NAMDA) staff working
in the LGAs. The accessibility to modern processing technologies was measured on
a two-point scale of accessible and inaccessible with a score of 1 and 0 respectively.
The weighted mean score was used to rank the technologies in order to identify the
most accessible technologies in the study area. The grand mean was also computed
and used to categorise the processors into high accessibility to modern Shea butter
processing technologies for values from the mean of 1.70 and above and low for
values below. The Shea butter processing output was measured at interval level by
weighing a unit quantity of Shea butter for sale and converting it to annual Shea
butter processor output. The average Shea butter processor output of 2303.66 Kg
was used to categorise level of processors output into high for value from 2303.66
Kg and above and low for value below. Constraints were measured on a three-point
scale of severe, mild and never with scores of 2, 1 and 0 respectively. The weighted
scores were computed and used to rank the constraints based on the severity.
Regression analysis was used to ascertain the association of selected socio-

economic characteristics and level of accessibility to modern Shea butter processing
technologies on Shea butter processors’ output in Niger state. The linear regression
model was used and the functional linear relationship is given as equations below.
Y=f(X1, X2,X3,X4,X5,X6 ……….. Ui)
Y=β0 + X1+X2+X3+……………..X10+Ui
Where Y=Shea butter production, X1= household size, X2= education (formal), X3 =
unit price per Kg butter, X4=income from Shea butter, X5= level of engagement,
X6=sources of finance and X7= accessibility to modern processing technologies and
Ui = error.
Results and Discussion
Level of Accessibility to Modern Shea Butter Processing Technologies
Table 1 reveals that milling machine ( =0.9), crusher ( =0.3) and roaster ( =0.2)
were the most accessible modern Shea butter processing technologies in Niger
State. The reason for the processors identifying these technologies as the most
accessible technology could possibly be that the technologies (equipment) were
given to the processors by the Government and development partners like GIZ in the
state as a means to boost Shea butter production in term of quality and quantity. It
55
could also be that the technologies can be used to reduce drudgery and produce
more butter at a time.
However, the least accessible technologies in Niger State were expeller ( =0.0),
vibrating screen ( =0.0) and pre-cleaner ( =0.0). The reason for this could be that
the technologies (equipment) may be very expensive for the processors to acquire
as individual or collectively. It could also be that the technologies (equipment) did not
add any value in term of increasing the quantity of Shea butter produced because it
was not effective to completely remove the Shea butter from the waste.
With Regard to the distribution of the processors based on the level of accessibility
to modern Shea butter processing technologies, the data reveals that the level of
accessibility to modern Shea butter processing technologies was low among the
processors in Niger State with 66.2% of them falling within the category. The reason
for the low accessibility to modern Shea butter processing technologies in the study
area could be that the technologies were expensive and the cost of maintaining the
equipment may be high that many processors may not be able to afford, hence, the
low level of accessibility to processing technologies. It could also be that the
intervention in term of equipment discussed earlier may not cover the whole state
because of large numbers of processors or processor groups in the state.
Table 1: Accessibility to modern Shea butter processing technologies
Modern processing Mean Standard
technologies deviation
Milling Machine 0.908 0.290
Crusher 0.287 0.453
Roaster 0.207 0.406
Kneader 0.096 0.295
Cracker 0.061 0.239
Heated holding tank/boiler 0.042 0.200
Parboiling tank 0.035 0.184
Storage tank 0.032 0.176
Screw/hydraulic press 0.022 0.148
Vibrating screen 0.003 0.056
Expeller 0.003 0.056
Pre-cleaner 0.003 0.056
Shea Butter Processors Outputs

Output is the end product of a series of continuous processes. Data on Table 2
shows the distribution of the quantity of Shea butter output per annum by processors
in Niger State. More than half (58.1%) of the Shea butter processors output was
2000kg and less per annum, 26% of the Shea butter processors output was between
2001-4000kg per year and the remaining 15.9% of the Shea butter processors
output was more than 4000kg per year. The result shows that Shea butter
processing output in the study area is low. The minimum annual Shea butter
processing output was 288kg, the maximum annual Shea butter processing output
56
was 11,712kg and the annual average Shea butter processors output was
2,303.66kg ± 1917.85.
Based on the level of Shea butter processors output in Niger state, most of the
processors fell under the low level of Shea butter processing output (64.8%) with the
output of between 288.00-2,303.65Kg per annum while the rest fall under the high
level of Shea butter processing output. It is interesting to note that despite Niger
State government interest in developing Shea butter processing output, most of the
processors still fell under the low level category of processors output. The reason for
this could be attributed to some of the constraints identified in the study such as lack
of credit assistance from government and commercial banks to help the processors
expand their enterprise, high cost of processing equipment that can help to increase
Shea butter production and lack of working materials. The reason could also be that
the state being the largest State in the country, the area covered by the interventions
may not be the whole state which may have affected the Shea butter processing
output adversely as revealed by the study. Similarly, because of the large numbers
of processor groups in the state, the intervention may not cover all the groups could
be another reason.
Table 2: Quantity of Shea butter processing output per annum.

Quantity of Shea butter processing Percentage Mean/Standard
output/ annum (kg) deviation
≤ 2000 58.1 2,303.66 ± 1,917.85
2001-4000 26.0
4001-6000 9.5
6001-8000 4.2
8001-10000 1.9
10001-12000 0.3
Minimum=288, Maximum=11,712.00
Constraints to Shea Butter Processing
Table 3 reveals the constraints confronting Shea butter processing in Niger State to
include lack of credit facilities ( =1.78), high cost of processing equipment ( =1.72)
and lack of government assistance in term of inputs ( =1.71) as major constraints to
Shea butter processing. Lack of credit facilities in the sector could be attributed to
negligence of government and investors to see Shea butter processing as a
profitable business. The cost of a unit Shea butter processing plants is very high and
many processors may not be able to buy the equipment. The result on government
assistance shows that the processors were not getting the adequate support in term
of credits and inputs from government to help the processors enhance their
enterprises.
Okolo, Omoregbee and Alufohai, 2015 reported similar results of lack credit facility
and lack of government assistance in term of inputs as serious constrain to Shea
butter processing in North Centre zone of Nigeria. The processors needed
57
assistance in form of loans to buy equipment and Shea nuts to increase their level of
output which are usually not available to them. This could be part of the reason for
low Shea butter processing output in Niger state since the processors were not
getting adequate financial assistance and inputs from the commercial banks and
government agencies such as the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) to
boost Shea butter processing output in the state.
Table 3: Constraints to Shea butter processing

Constraints Mean Standard
deviation
Lack of credit facility 1.78 0.53
High cost of processing equipment 1.72 0.53
Lack of govt. assistance 1.71 0.61
Lack of modern Shea butter processing technology 1.59 0.68
Lack of working materials 1.55 0.61
Tedious method of processing 1.53 0.65
Felling of Shea trees 1.49 0.70
Scarcity of Shea nuts 1.45 0.62
Lack of portable water 1.38 0.70
Lack of market for Shea butter 1.34 0.65
Lack of electricity 1.31 0.83
High cost of maintaining equipment 1.22 0.83
Lack of storage facilities 1.07 0.80
Labour scarcity 0.97 0.77
Relationship between selected Socio-economic Characteristics, Accessibility

to modern Processing Technologies and Shea Butter Processing Output.
Table 4 shows the Chi-square relationship between selected socio-economic
characteristics and level of Shea butter processing output. The Table reveals that
level of education (χ2=11.18, p≤0.05) and level of engagement of the processors
(χ2=8.71, p≤0.05) were significantly related to the level of Shea butter processing
output. However, method of processing and sources of finance were not significantly
related to level of processing output. The result on level of education and level of
engagement of the processors were in agreement with the apriori expectation. The
higher the educational attainment of the processors, the higher the processing output
since education will allow them to have good understanding of innovations in the
industry and guide them on the appropriate technologies to adopt that would
translate to increased Shea butter production in the state.
Table 4 reveals that income from Shea butter (r=0.82, p≤0.05) and accessibility to
modern Shea butter processing technologies (r=0.16, p≤0.05) were significantly
related to the level of Shea butter processing output in Niger state. The higher the
Shea butter processing output, the higher the income expected to `be derived from
the enterprise. Similarly, access to modern Shea butter processing technologies
would enhance the adoption of the technologies and utilisation of the technologies
that could translate to increased Shea butter output. As the processors utilise these
58
technologies because they are more accessible to them, the Shea butter processing
output is expected to increase since technology is known to make difficult processing
stages easier that could lead to more Shea butter processing output.
Table 4: Relationship between Socio-economic Characteristics, Accessibility
to modern Processing Technologies and level of Shea butter processing
output.
Variables χ2 r-
value
Household size 0.06
Unit price/Kg 0.07
Income from Shea butter 0.82**
Level of education 11.18**
Method of production 0.01
Sources of finance 6.21
Level of engagement 8.71**
Accessibility to modern Shea butter processing 0.16**
technologies
** P≤ 0.05
Factors associated with Level of Shea Butter Processing Output

Table 5 reveals that some selected socio-economic characteristics and level of
accessibility to modern Shea butter processing technology (F=104.13, P≤0.05).
Household size (β=-0.065, P≤0.05), unit price of one Kilogramme of Shea butter (β=-
0.380, P≤0.05), income from Shea butter (β=0.978, P≤0.05) and accessibility to
modern Shea butter processing technologies (β=0.138, P≤0.05) determined level of
Shea butter processing output in Niger State. However, the contribution from
household size and unit price of one Kilogramme of butter were negative.
The result on income is in congruent with the report of Anigbogu, Agbasi and Okoli
(2015) that a positive significant relationship existed between income and aggregate
agricultural productivity (output) of farmers in Imo state. Income derived from an
enterprise is expected to stimulate output. As the income of the Shea butter
processors increases, the processors will respond by increasing their level of Shea
butter processing output. The reason for significance of accessibility to modern Shea
butter processing technologies to Shea butter production could be because the more
accessible the technologies were to the processors, the more is the likelihood of the
technologies being evaluated by them and possibly influencing the adoption and
utilisation of the technologies. So, the more the processors had access to modern
Shea butter processing technologies, the more the expected level of utilisation of the
technologies which is in turn expected to translate into more Shea butter processing
output in the study area.
Household size and unit price of one Kilogramme of butter had inverse relationship
with level of Shea butter processing output. The result on household size was similar
to a study on cocoa by Fawole and Rahji (2016) that report a negative contribution of
59
family size and output. This indicates that the lower the household size, the higher
the level of processing output. The reason for this could be that the more member of
the household that were used, the less they actively participate because they tend to
leave work for each other which may affect the level of output on the long run as
compared to very few people that gives their best to achieve higher processing
output.
The lower the price of one kilogramme of Shea butter, the higher the level of
processing output. Contrary to prior expectation, the result indicates an inverse
relationship between unit price of one Kilogramme of butter and Shea butter
processing output in Niger state and statistically significant. The result disagrees with
the work of Verter (2015) which shows a weak relationship between the producer
price index (PPI) and crop production in Nigeria. The reason for this is not far-
fetched because as the price gets lower, the processors would have to increase
processing output in order to get a favourable income from Shea butter processing to
make up for the lower price. The most determinant of the level of Shea butter
processing output was income from Shea butter (97.8%) and accessibility to modern
processing technologies (13.8%).
Table 5: Factors associated with level of Shea butter processing output

Variables Beta t-value
Constant
Household size -0.065 -2.294**
Education (formal) -0.014 -0.506
Unit price of 1Kg butter -0.380 -12.785**
Income from Shea butter 0.978 32.257**
Method of production 0.043 1.599
Level of engagement 0.009 0.315

Sources of finance 0.024 0.903
Accessibility to modern processing technologies 0.138 4.948**

Constraint to Shea butter processing 0.050 1.805
** P≤ 0.05, R=0.89, R2=0.80, Adjusted R2=0.79, Standard error of estimate=879.62 and
F-value= 104.13.
Conclusion and Recommendations

The determinants of Shea butter processing output were income, household size,
unit price of butter and accessibility to modern processing technologies. Processors
had low level of accessibility to modern Shea butter processing technologies and
most of them were processing at low level of output. Lack of credit facilities and high
cost of processing equipment were identified as severe constraint. Level of
education and engagement of processors, income and accessibility to modern Shea
butter processing technologies were found to have a significant relationship with the
level of processing output.
Financial institutions should provide soft loans to Shea butter processors to help
them acquire inputs and processing equipment to improve access to modern Shea
60
butter processing technologies. Similarly, Government agencies such as the

Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and the Niger State Commodity Export
Promotion Council (NSCEPC) should provide Shea butter processing equipment
such as milling machine, crusher, roaster and kneader to the processors to improve
their accessibility to modern processing technologies that have been identified to
increase Shea butter production, thereby enhancing the enterprises in Niger state.
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Creative Commons User License: CC BY-NC-ND Journal of Agricultural Extension

Characteristics of Shea Butter Processing in Niger State, Nigeria

Tijani Sarafat Ayanfunke

Sanusi Mohammed Kabiru

Regression analysis was used to ascertain the association of selected socio-

Level of Accessibility to Modern Shea Butter Processing Technologies

Shea Butter Processors Outputs

Table 2: Quantity of Shea butter processing output per annum.

Table 3: Constraints to Shea butter processing

Relationship between selected Socio-economic Characteristics, Accessibility

Factors associated with Level of Shea Butter Processing Output

Table 5: Factors associated with level of Shea butter processing output

Level of engagement 0.009 0.315

Accessibility to modern processing technologies 0.138 4.948**

Conclusion and Recommendations

butter processing technologies. Similarly, Government agencies such as the

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