Fair Trade is has been defined as “…an organized social movement and market-based approach that aims to help producers in developing countries obtain better trading conditions and promote sustainability.”  The movement has allowed humans in developing nations to receive a higher price for their goods and handicrafts, as well as, afford higher social and environmental standards than would come with mass production and lower prices.  Buying cosmetics or other products from companies like Akoma (http://www.akomacooperative.com/Shea_Butter.html ) puts the money into the hands of villagers who can use it to supply their children with an education, or to provide medical care to their people.

The villagers of Pusu-Namogo in Ghana have formed a cooperative and became Fair Trade certified in order to provide organic raw Shea Butter and luscious Ghanaian Black Soap to the world.  These two products are both fantastic representatives of what Fair Trade is famous for, high quality and natural.

Shea Butter has always been considered an essential in Africa.  It is used for cooking, as a lubricant, on the hair, on the skin, as a medicinal remedy, etc.  As African nations interacted more with outside nations, Shea Butter began to be incorporated into cosmetics, and medicinal products used by top dollar consumers.  Is it any wonder?  Shea Butter is high in vitamins A and E, two vitamins known to have a restorative ability when it comes to healing problems of the skin. 

Raw Shea Butter is now being traded and used throughout the world on: stretch marks, burns, eczema, cracked skin, and even hair!  Purchasing raw Shea Butter is an investment in epidermal health as it actually works with the skin to draw moisture from the air and aids in the skins own healing capabilities.  Using raw Shea Butter is important when using it as a moisturizer as processing has a tendency to strip the vital nutrients from the product, rendering it less effective.  If you’re one of the growing number of consumers who care about where your money goes you would much rather purchase a Shea Butter product raw Shea Butter from the Puso-Namogo village than a Shea Butter product from some high end store like L’Occitane.

Another way to treat yourself and help out a working African community is to buy the Ghanaian Black Soap.  This Soap is made using an old formula.  A lye is made using discarded cocoa pods from the chocolate farms, and then is added to virgin coconut oil and Shea Butter to make the most luxurious Soap you have ever put on your body.  The Soap is both a moisturizer and an exfoliant.  It contains no unnatural additives and has a clean, fresh, scent.  People who have bought the Soap rave about its foamy freshness.

Do yourself, your skin, and your heart a favor by purchasing Fair Trade organic raw Shea Butter from the Akoma Cooperative.  You will not only receive a top quality product, but you will help to keep a small village on its feet and working to provide a better life for their children.  Visit them at: http://www.akomacooperative.com/about_akoma.html

Or to purchase online visit www.akomaskincare.co.uk

Keep well

Angus