African \\\'women\\\'s gold\\\' helps reduce poverty

The fruit of the shea tree has long been considered sacred by many in Western Africa because of its myriad health benefits. But now growing demand among Western consumers for the fruit, known as "women's gold" by those who harvest it, is helping improve lives in some of the world's poorest communities. Sweet-lovers around the globe already consume the nut as shea butter, which is used to make chocolate, as well as in products like margarine and as a cooking oil. Western companies such as L'Oreal, The Body Shop and L'Occitane are also using more and more of the product as a natural moisturiser and anti-ageing ingredient in their cosmetics. Around 600,000 tonnes of shea are produced each year in Africa. Of that around two thirds are exported to Europe, more than double the amount shipped 10 years ago, while the rest is consumed locally. Cosmetics companies, which purchase around a tenth of Africa's shea exports, have been buying more to please increasingly socially-conscious consumers. And now that change is starting to help women at the other end of the supply chain, according to AFP.