Yahaya Amina on Using Shea Waste for Fuel

Yahaya Amina is a shea butter producer working in Ghana's Upper West Region as part of the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre cooperative. She is one of the women whose work now includes repurposing leftover shea materials — shells and husks produced during processing — as fuel instead of cutting wood.

In this video, Amina speaks about what this shift has meant in practice. Before, wood was the fuel source — which meant cutting down trees, including shea trees. Now, the leftover materials from shea processing are used instead. In her own words, this makes the process easier and prevents shea trees from being cut down. It is a direct account of how a change in production practice has reduced environmental impact while making daily work simpler.

Amina is one of the women whose work makes Baraka shea butter possible. Baraka sources shea butter directly through the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre in Ghana's Upper West Region — a cooperative relationship maintained for over 15 years. Baraka has invested in improving working conditions at the cooperative, including the introduction of shea waste as a fuel source to reduce reliance on wood and protect shea trees. Every batch is hand-processed using traditional water-based methods with zero chemical extraction, and complete chain-of-custody documentation is available for any order. The women who produce this ingredient receive a fair-trade premium directly, without intermediaries.

Shea processing produces significant byproduct material at several stages — shells, husks, and pressed cake — which would otherwise go to waste. You can read more about how the hand-processing steps work in How Handmade Shea Butter is Made. Amina's story is also part of a wider account of Baraka's environmental commitments — read more at What Is Chain of Custody in Natural Skincare and Fair Trade Shea Butter: The Konjeihi Story.

The shea waste fuel practice and other sustainability improvements at the cooperative are documented in Baraka's Social and Environmental Impact Report.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Yahaya Amina and what does she do?

Yahaya Amina is a shea butter producer and member of the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre in Ghana's Upper West Region. She processes shea butter using traditional hand methods as part of Baraka's direct supply chain. In this video, she speaks about how her work now uses leftover shea materials as fuel instead of wood — a practice that makes processing easier and reduces the cutting of shea trees in the surrounding area.

How is Baraka improving working conditions at the cooperative?

Baraka has supported the introduction of shea waste as a fuel source at the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre. Shells and husks produced during shea processing are now used as fuel instead of wood, which previously required cutting trees — including shea trees. This reduces the physical work of sourcing fuel, lowers environmental impact, and protects the shea tree population that the cooperative depends on. Amina speaks directly about this change and its effects in this video.

What does Amina say about using shea waste for fuel?

Amina speaks about the practical and environmental difference the change has made. In her own words, using shea waste instead of wood makes the process easier and prevents shea trees from being cut down. She frames it as a straightforward improvement — one that has reduced effort and protected a natural resource that is central to the cooperative's livelihood. Her account connects a specific production practice directly to a positive environmental outcome.

Who makes Baraka shea butter?

Baraka shea butter is made by women at the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre in Ghana's Upper West Region, where Baraka has maintained a direct cooperative relationship for over 15 years. The shea butter is hand-processed using traditional water-based methods with no chemical extraction at any stage. Producers like Yahaya Amina are not contracted labourers or paid spokespeople — they are the women whose ongoing work makes each batch possible. Their names and stories are shared as part of Baraka's transparency commitment.

How does buying from Baraka support women like Amina?

Every purchase of Baraka shea butter contributes to the fair-trade premium paid directly to the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre, without intermediaries. That premium supports the cooperative's ongoing work and the sustainability improvements — including practices like shea waste as fuel — that reduce environmental impact while making daily work easier for the women who produce Baraka's ingredients. The cooperative structure is designed so that the connection between a purchase and a producer remains direct and traceable.

About the Author

Wayne Dunn is the founder of Baraka Impact and a former Professor of Practice in Sustainability at McGill University. He holds an M.Sc. in Management from Stanford and has spent over 15 years working directly with the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre in Ghana's Upper West Region to source traditionally made shea butter and natural oils. He shares DIY skincare recipes and ingredient guides designed to be made at home with real ingredients — and sourced with full transparency about where they come from.