Shea sector: field-side price set at 250 FCFA per kilogram for the 2026-2027 campaign

Key measures for the new campaign include setting the minimum field-side price at 250 FCFA per kilogram. Prices are also fixed at 275 FCFA/kg for interior warehouses and 305 FCFA/kg at factories. Ehui Kouassi Jérôme, President of the Board of Directors of the Cotton, Cashew, and Shea Council, stated that these measures aim to structure and regulate a sector that provides significant income for rural populations, especially women.

The management of the shea sector was entrusted to the Cotton, Cashew, and Shea Council by ordinance n°2025-259 of April 23, 2025. Since then, actions have included identifying stakeholders, strengthening traceability, and preparing a comprehensive sector reform. For the 2025-2026 campaign, 168 buyers, 21 processing units, and 32 exporters were identified, with 51,697 tons of shea kernels recorded in the formal circuit and 14,078 tons of shea butter exported to 13 countries.

The 2026-2027 campaign officially opened on August 14, 2026, with the transfer of kernels to factories authorized from August 17, 2026. Konaté Issa, Deputy Director General of the Cotton and Cashew Council, emphasized prioritizing local processing units due to their capacity exceeding current production. He reiterated the ban on exporting shea nuts and kernels by land borders until further notice and called for developing secondary processing of shea butter, such as refining, to