Key Takeaways:
In August 2025, Nigeria became the latest African country to join its sister countries like Ghana, Togo, Burkina Faso, and Mali to suspend all exportation of shea nuts, a nut used in making the ever-popular shea butter, the multifunctional natural ingredient most widely used in cosmetics and beauty products globally, including moisturizers, lip balms, hair conditioners and premium bodycare. This ban, however, targets not the butter itself but the raw nuts that underpin the entire value chain.
Nigeria accounts for around 40% of global shea nut production, but paradoxically, it captures less than 1% of the global shea butter market, which is currently valued at $6.5 billion. Describing this as unacceptable, Nigeria’s Vice President Kashim Shettima said “[this policy] is about industrialization, rural transformation, gender empowerment, and expanding Nigeria's global trade footprint,” during the announcement at the State House in the capital, Abuja. For decades, the country has exported raw nuts and kernels, leaving the high-value processing to other nations. The new policy seeks to reverse that imbalance by ensuring that more of the processing, and thus more of the profits, stay within Nigeria.
Shaping Supply Chains
In the short term, the global beauty industry is expected to experience some disruption. Brands sourcing directly from Nigeria’s raw exports may face tighter supply and rising costs. However, as Shalom Lloyd, founder and MD of B-Corp certified Naturally Tribal Skincare Ltd (Naturally Tiwa Skincare), said to BeautyMatter, “Nigeria’s decision is both monumental and long overdue. This ban signals that Nigeria, as well as the world, is beginning to recognize its pivotal role in the global shea sector. Although Nigeria is the world’s largest grower of shea trees, it remains one of the smallest exporters of shea butter, largely because raw nuts and kernels are shipped out for processing elsewhere. This has been a missed opportunity, until now.”
Globally, only about 10% of shea production is used in cosmetics, while roughly 90% goes into food, particularly as a cocoa butter equivalent in confectionery. This means beauty brands are not the largest consumers but are nonetheless highly visible players when supply chains shift. For many, the ban could serve as a wake-up call to diversify sourcing strategies, deepen partnerships with African processors, and reassess reliance on volatile commodity markets.
Within Nigeria, the ban has already exposed challenges in the domestic shea industry. Khalil Fawaz, founder of Copaci Nigeria Limited, describes how local cosmetics manufacturers are adapting. “The blocking of imports of shea butter caused me a problem at first,” he said, drawing contrasting parallels to the shea butter he buys from Nigeria versus the Ivory Coast, which is much clearer in color. “However, people in Nigeria are adapting to the new Nigerian shea, for example, adding extra fatty materials in the formulation to make it appear lighter. The Nigerian market consists of lots of small manufacturers and a very erratic marketplace,” he continued.
The volatility he described reflects a fragmented supply chain dominated by smallholder farmers and informal processors. “Prices go up and down, and during times of oversupply, they fall a lot. Unfortunately, this falling price mechanism stops the continued manufacture and supply of shea, as nobody wants to sell at a low price or at a loss. Both the supply and pricing of the material are unstable, which makes it difficult for cosmetics factories to keep product costs constant.” For the ban to deliver on its promise of value addition, Nigeria must invest in infrastructure, training, certification, and financial support. Without these, the market risks remaining unstable, even with reduced raw exports.
This ambition aligns with a broader push across Africa for what experts call “ingredient sovereignty,” ensuring that countries benefit more equitably from their natural resources. By fostering local processing, Nigeria could create jobs, empower the estimated 16 million rural women across Africa whose livelihoods depend on shea, and increase its bargaining power in global trade.
Yet, as Lloyd cautioned, the success of this shift depends on execution. Weak infrastructure, limited access to affordable finance, and regulatory bottlenecks remain major hurdles. “Scaling also depends on consistent training and support, both for factory teams and for the rural women collectors who remain the true custodians of this resource,” she added.
Implications for Beauty Brands
For global beauty companies, the ban underpins the importance of long-term sourcing resilience. “First, partnership is everything,” Lloyd said. “Beauty brands need to invest in long-term relationships with African processors rather than chasing short-term price advantages. Fair contracts, forward purchasing agreements, and even co-investment in infrastructure can go a long way in stabilizing supply.”
She also emphasized diversification, which involves sourcing across multiple African markets rather than concentrating in a single country, as well as transparency, ensuring that brands know the origin of their ingredients and that supply chains are ethical and sustainable. Meanwhile, local manufacturers like Fawaz stressed the importance of stabilizing the domestic market. Larger players with the ability to store and regulate supply could help reduce price volatility, making Nigerian shea more reliable for both local and international customers.
Experts have also speculated that the disruption could prompt beauty brands to experiment with alternatives, such as mango butter, cocoa butter, or murumuru. Lloyd acknowledged the possibility but remained firm in her conviction. “Shea is one of the few ingredients on our planet that is simultaneously a humectant, emollient, and occlusive, making it a near-perfect base for many formulations.”
Rather than displacement, she sees this as an opportunity to diversify ingredient portfolios while reaffirming the irreplaceable status of shea. “Shea is far more than an ingredient; it embodies heritage, culture, and efficacy. Consumers are deeply loyal to shea because of its centuries-long proven results,” she said. There is also the consideration of how marketably extortionate other alternatives are. “Alternatives such as cocoa butter are too expensive compared to shea butter and can only be used for products which are exported and sold at a higher price,” Fawaz said.
Beyond Nigeria and shea, the ban carries lessons for the global beauty industry. Ingredient sovereignty, ethical sourcing, and resilience are no longer optional, but imperatives.“The biggest lesson is this: ingredient sovereignty matters,” Lloyd said. “Countries like Nigeria are waking up to the reality that exporting raw materials at the lowest value point undermines long-term growth.”
Nigeria’s temporary ban on raw shea nut exports is a statement of intent. By seeking to capture more of the value chain at home, the country is challenging the long-standing dynamic where African countries serve primarily as raw material suppliers. For beauty brands, the implications are twofold, including short-term supply disruptions, as well as long-term opportunities to build more ethical, transparent, and resilient sourcing models.
If the policy is backed by investment and structural reform, Nigeria could become both a shea powerhouse and a global hub for natural ingredients and innovation. For the beauty industry, this is a pivotal moment to rethink relationships with suppliers, honor the heritage of key ingredients like shea, and participate in a more equitable global trade system.
