For centuries West African women have been using shea butter, or karite, in traditional medicines, to cook meals or to massage newborn babies.
Now Western women are flocking to perfumeries and department stores looking for the same shea butter to smooth wrinkles, soften heels and moisturize hair.
"Natural, environmentally friendly and traditional beauty products are more and more in demand", said a skincare advisor at a beauty store in Paris. "Shea butter is popular because it has so many different qualities and uses."
A trip to Paris's big department stores or to specialist beauty shops provides all the evidence needed that karite has become a beauty must-have, with shelves crowded with a range of face, body and hair products containing shea butter or shea oil.
Small, independent brands with obscure names rub shoulders with karite products from established brands such as Decleor, Rene Furterer and Phyto. And -- no small feat -- the humble shea nut has even managed to charm its way into products made by Clarins, Sisley and other great names of the notoriously snobbish French skincare market.
Even leaving the trend for natural products aside, shea butter in the West is coming to hold its own as a miraculous, multi-use product that promises soft, moisturized skin, reduced wrinkles, effective sun protection, shiny hair, healthy scalp, protection against the elements and against the effects of pollution.
"I heard about shea butter from an African friend and I have to agree that it is one product that really works, you can use it for everything", said an enthusiastic shopper in one beauty store.
Over time, this legendary butter used to treat cuts, grazes, burns, stretch marks, blemishes, eczema, psoriasis and other skin conditions, earned the name of "women's gold" in the 12 African nations where the karite tree grows.
It has in fact become something of a sacred tree, dubbed the "tree of life" by the women of Ghana, Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso and elsewhere who, by hand, gather the nuts, dry them, grind them and boil them to extract the precious butter.
That appellation is all the more understandable given that the 40,000 to 60,000 tonnes of shea butter and shea oil exported each year keep entire rural communities fed, clothed, educated and in good health.
So important is karite in the lives of the women who make the butter, that international bodies such as the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the Food and Agricultural Organization have stepped in along with local governments with support programs to ensure their livelihood is safeguarded and that new, durable export opportunities are found.
So while Western women discover the myriad beautifying qualities of karite, the women in shea-producing countries learn to read and write, set up businesses and receive training to improve and facilitate their work.
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