Shea improvement, management and exploitation strategies needed for the

rapid transformation of the shea industry

PRESENTATION BY
Enaberue, L. O.
NIGERIAN INSTITUTE FOR OIL PALM RESEARCH (NIFOR).
AT THE SHEA 2016 CONFERENCE HELD AT IBADAN ON THE 10TH 11TH MAY, 2016
 INTRODUCTION

*The development of the shea industry in

Nigeria is burdened with numerous
problems.
 Introd Conti
* The long gestation period of the tree

* Picking of fruits from the wild

* Inadequate butter processing methods

* Frequent cutting of branches of the

tree for charcoal and firewood
 Introduc.. Conti.

* Annual bush fires

* Unorganized marketing strategies for

butter

* Exploitation of woodland resources

NIFOR experience towards
shea tree domestication
Studies on distribution, density and
variation of Shea trees in Nigeria.

Shea diagnostic survey

Mass production of grafted shea as early

maturing planting materials for plantation
establishment.
Studies on distribution, density and
variation of Shea trees in Nigeria.
 Table 1: THE DISTRIBUTION OF SHEA IN THE ECOLOGICAL
BELTS OF NIGERIA

S/No. Coastal Mangrove Derived/Southern Guinea Northern Guinea Sahel Surface Area Km2
1. swamp/Rain
Rivers Forest Savannah Savannah 11,077
2. Bayelsa 10,773
3/ Lagos 3,345
4. Delta 17,698
5. Ondo 15,500
6. Akwa Ibom 7,081
7. Cross River 20,156
8. Ogun 16,762
9. Edo N. Edo 17,802
10. Imo 5,100
11. Abia 6,320
12. Ebonyi N. Ebonyi 5,670
13. Enugu N. Enugu 7,161
14. Oyo N. Oyo 128,454
15. Osun` N. Ogun 9,251
16. Ekiti N. Ekiti 6,353
17. Benue 34,059
18. Kogi 29,833
19. Kwara 128,825
20. Niger 136,315
21. FCT 7,315
22. Nasarawa 27,117
23. Plateau 30,913
24. Taraba 54,473
25. Adamawa 45,857
26. Bauchi 36,917
27. Gombe 18,768
28. S. Kaduna N. Kaduna 46,058
29. Kebbi 36,800
30. S. Born N. Borno 30,898
31. Yobe 45,502
32. Kano 20,131
33. Jigawa 23,154
34. Katsina 24,192
35. Zamfara 39,762
36. S. Sokoto N. Sokoto 25,973
Rainfall mm/yr. 2,500 3,500 1,500 1,000 500
Shea tree NIL V. High High Low
density
 Shea diagnostic survey
 Objective OF THE SURVEY
To bring Shea in to cultivation and to curb
desertification with the aim of improving the
livelihood of poor rural farmers and
sustainable agriculture
 AREA OF STUDY

Benue
Edo
Enugu
Jigawa
Kebbi
Kwara
Niger
Oyo .
 Findings from the survey
Shea trees have good distribution in Nigeria
concentrating most in the Guinea savannah belt.
Some areas with few stands

Several attributes used for varietal discrimination

at local level includes Fruit size, Pulp taste,
flowering pattern, leaf size, shea butter colour,
and tree height.
 Findings . Cont
Attributes of planting materials preferred by
farmers and marketers varies, the common
attributes being early maturing and high yielding

Most farmers are willing to cultivate planting

materials if assisted with planting materials.

Flowering and fruiting period are uniform in all

location visited except early flowering trees found
in Oyo state.
 Findings . Cont
Major constraints to domestication of shea trees;
Long vegetative phase
Irregular flowering
Low fruit production
Lack of planting materials
Lack of awareness on the importance of shea
trees and shea butter
Low rate of regeneration
Seed recalcitrant
Difficulty in transplanting
 Intervention strategies
Production of planting materials(Grafted
shea seedlings)

Collection and characterization of shea

accessions

Proper germination studies

Mass production of grafted shea (Vitellaria paradoxa)
as early maturing planting materials for plantation
establishment
 The juvenile phase of the naturally
regenerated shea varies between 15 and 20
years

Domestication and genetic improvement

strategies are required to conserve the
germplasm and enhance fruit production of the
species.

One of such strategies for the Domestication

and genetic improvement of shea tree is by
vegetative propagation(grafting)
Shea seedlings in the nursery
 Shea Seedling establishment

* Putting barrier under polybags for easy

transplanting
* Building of shade in the nursery

* Mulching

* Building small shade on the transplanted

grafted shea.
Repositioning the Shea industry

We could lose our dominant position if trees are cut and

not replaced; Hence need for domestication
Strategies (Develop the value chain)
Domesticate the crop (reduce gestation)
Largescale planting materials production (conventional &
tissue culture)
Encourage efficient collection and utilization of fruits
(quite a lot are lost; quality is poor)
Efficient processing; seamless integration of efficiency,
industry requirements and integration (training) of rural
people especially women
Creating high level of awareness on benefits and potential
income to the rural families
Planting material production:
grafting

Newly grafted shea

seedling
Planting material production

Successfully grafted shea seedling,

four weeks after grafting
Planting material production

Grafted shea seedling planted in

the field
Alternative domestication
method: seed derived nurseries
At NIFOR we also raise nurseries from seeds
How do the two methods
compare?

When there is no significant biotic

competition
Both types of seedlings start flowering at
about 5 years, down from 20-25years in
wild
More uniformity in grafted seedlings than
seed derived seedlings
Other Related Research Issues
Shea breeding continues
Shea disease control
Processing machines development
Product quality control
NIFOR welcomes collaborations

Diseased
seedling

Shea soap
Shea butter
Benefits of Shea
domestication
Provision of planting materials at will to growers
Shea value chain can develop in a structured and
planned order
Processors and other down stream actors can set up
shop
Rural folks, the primary players can improve
livelihoods by developing Shea based farming system
agriculture
Therefore come out of poverty and build prosperity
Governments can key in too to improve rural
livelihoods, promote processing and quality control
The same governments can later take taxes and
increase its income base
Good for all
 MY Wansangere
Experience
 Coal production

One of the major problem shea tree

is facing in this village is coal
production
Assemblage of cut shea tree in preparedness for coal production
 RECOMMENDATION:

Wansangere village is blessed with good

vegetation for shea trees.
The weather is a typical representative of
the guinea savanna, where shea trees are
densely populated.
Shea trees found during my visit are
healthy and the soil is sandy in nature,
which supports shea growth. Thus planting
the crop will do excellently well.
 RECOMMENDATION Cont.

Cutting down of shea trees for coal production

led to the scanty nature of the trees. Such act
should stop
 CONCLUSION
* Shea tree improvement is a very
long-term activity, necessarily inclusive
of a wide variety of interventions, from
the immediate and local to the large-
scale, regional and international.
 THANKS FOR LISTENING
Dr Louis Enaberue, Chief Research
Officer NIFOR
08060481124
Oshoneflorish@gmail.com