Jump to content
IndiaDivine.org

Tested Shea

Rate this topic


Guest guest

Recommended Posts

Guest guest

I am curious about " tested " shea, could you elaborate on this? And about the 2

suppliers that pay $400.00 to have their shea tested, what amount do they have

tested, bulk, by the pound etc. and what do they test for, also do they test for

bacteria, and what type of bacteria? I meant to post this question, but we went

away over the weekend, and just now came accross the old post. Marti

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest guest

Well as I haven't seen a reply to this yet I'll got ahead and elaborate.

 

>I am curious about " tested " shea, could you elaborate on this? And about

>the 2 suppliers that pay $400.00 to have their shea tested,

 

There are more than only 2 suppliers that have tested shea butter. I have

some, our list mom has some, africansheabuttercompany.com has some, conissa

has some, aromakaye has some, annelees, etc... these are butters that have

been tested by the american shea butter institute and are graded.

 

There are other labs that do testing of butter but do not grade it as the

institute does. The main importance is tested, uncontaminated shea butter.

If it makes the grade of A, well so the better!

 

 

>what amount do they have tested, bulk, by the pound etc.

 

Each person/company having their butter tested has differing amounts. It is

quite subjective imho. The institute charges 400.00 for testing and for

grading. Other labs are not quite the same.

 

I believe it is usually a whole batch that comes in. Lets say that I import

1 ton of butter. I would submit a 2 kg sample for testing. It could be

more, it could be less for other folks.

 

 

>and what do they test for, also do they test for bacteria, and what type of

>bacteria?

 

The first test run is for fungi/yeast. This is most common and important.

If the kernals have sat out in the sun to long and the fruit has rotted off

or was boiled off there is the potential for microbial growth. It is

recommended that the African producers bleach wash the kernals to avoid the

mold. If there is mold then the butter is no good. (ick can you imagine).

If the butter passes that then it goes on to be tested for the amount of

cinnamic acid it has, amount of vitamin A it has, the percent of iron,

percent of free fatty acids, percent of peroxide etc. Those are all

indicative of the quality of the butter. High percents of FFA, iron or

peroxide leads to fast rancidity. There is more, but my book is downstairs

and I am going off of memory right now.

 

Now, I know that Sharon in Tx. posted about the importance of tested butter

etc.. as have I in the past. It is important imo because the last thing

folks need to do is to spread mold on their skin or use it making creams and

lotions and such. The institute is not the only facility that tests butter.

However it was in connection with ASBI that I met Sharon (hi, waving) last

August while we attended the Institutes Shea butter workshop with Dr. Sam

Hunter.

 

Hope this helped you out a bit.

 

Margaret

Certified Shea Butter Technician (hehehe)

http://www.naturalindulgences.com

 

_______________

Get tips for maintaining your PC, notebook accessories and reviews in

Technology 101. http://special.msn.com/tech/technology101.armx

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest guest

Hi Margret

was thinking about you the other day and talking to Carla about the little hole

in the wall we went to for supper

Well we did get the Shea butter in and it is tested Grade A and B

Carla ask about you all the time

My web is under construction so she handles the Shea

the grade a we carry has a high 9.09 unsaponifiable value which you know is

great

Hope thing go great for you

Sharon

Shea butter tech

saying hi

to all soap buddy

 

 

Margaret Helm-Duell <naturalindulgences wrote:

Well as I haven't seen a reply to this yet I'll got ahead and elaborate.

 

>I am curious about " tested " Shea, could you elaborate on this? And about

>the 2 suppliers that pay $400.00 to have their Shea tested,

 

There are more than only 2 suppliers that have tested Shea butter. I have

some, our list mom has some, africansheabuttercompany.com has some, conissa

has some, aromakaye has some, annelees, etc... these are butters that have

been tested by the american Shea butter institute and are graded.

 

There are other labs that do testing of butter but do not grade it as the

institute does. The main importance is tested, uncontaminated Shea butter.

If it makes the grade of A, well so the better!

 

 

>what amount do they have tested, bulk, by the pound etc.

 

Each person/company having their butter tested has differing amounts. It is

quite subjective imho. The institute charges 400.00 for testing and for

grading. Other labs are not quite the same.

 

I believe it is usually a whole batch that comes in. Lets say that I import

1 ton of butter. I would submit a 2 kg sample for testing. It could be

more, it could be less for other folks.

 

 

>and what do they test for, also do they test for bacteria, and what type of

>bacteria?

 

The first test run is for fungi/yeast. This is most common and important.

If the kernals have sat out in the sun to long and the fruit has rotted off

or was boiled off there is the potential for microbial growth. It is

recommended that the African producers bleach wash the kernals to avoid the

mold. If there is mold then the butter is no good. (ick can you imagine).

If the butter passes that then it goes on to be tested for the amount of

cinnamic acid it has, amount of vitamin A it has, the percent of iron,

percent of free fatty acids, percent of peroxide etc. Those are all

indicative of the quality of the butter. High percents of FFA, iron or

peroxide leads to fast rancidity. There is more, but my book is downstairs

and I am going off of memory right now.

 

Now, I know that Sharon in Tx. posted about the importance of tested butter

etc.. as have I in the past. It is important imo because the last thing

folks need to do is to spread mold on their skin or use it making creams and

lotions and such. The institute is not the only facility that tests butter.

However it was in connection with ASBI that I met Sharon (hi, waving) last

August while we attended the Institutes Shea butter workshop with Dr. Sam

Hunter.

 

Hope this helped you out a bit.

 

Margaret

Certified Shea Butter Technician (hehehe)

http://www.naturalindulgences.com

 

_______________

Get tips for maintaining your PC, notebook accessories and reviews in

Technology 101. http://special.msn.com/tech/technology101.armx

 

 

 

 

Step By Step Instructions On Making Rose Petal Preserves:

http://www.av-at.com/stuff/rosejam.html

 

To adjust your group settings (i.e. go no mail) see the following link:

/join

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest guest

Hey Sharon,

 

>Hi Margret

>was thinking about you the other day and talking to Carla about the little

>hole in the wall we went to for supper

 

Ya, but it was a lot of FUN!

 

 

>Well we did get the Shea butter in and it is tested Grade A and B

 

That is great! I hope you'll have a good write up on your site when it's

done about the grading and all and how important the testing is. So did you

import seperate batches that graded differently? Or did the A and the B

come from the same shippment. I always wonder how that works out ya know.

I am happy for you that you have found a source for good butter.

 

>Carla ask about you all the time

 

Tell her I said " hi " and I should give her a call or email. I told her I

would test some of her fo's in soy candles. I took a hiatus from candle

making till we moved and am now getting going again.

 

 

>My web is under construction so she handles the Shea

>the grade a we carry has a high 9.09 unsaponifiable value which you know is

>great

 

Good luck with the web site. And yes, the 9.09 unsap is very good!! I may

have to buy some from you. hehehe

 

>Hope thing go great for you

>Sharon

>Shea butter tech

>saying hi

>to all soap buddy

 

Thanks, and same to you!

Margaret

 

_______________

Check out the latest news, polls and tools in the MSN 2004 Election Guide!

http://special.msn.com/msn/election2004.armx

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest guest

HI Margret

do you import your Shea butter your self of buy Thu some one here

I am now making Shea soap for a large dist here in USA

going real good cant tell a lot of different for Grade A & B but the color

grade A is whiter been well filtered

if you need any let me know

great talking to you

My DH and I went to the Feb meeting this year looked for you but not luck

real interesting learn something new each time just how important it is to have

your Shea tested or to buy tested Shea and how unsafe it is to use untested

Shea butter..

hope to talk soon

Sharon

www.houstoncandlesupply.com tested unrefined Shea butter special

 

Margaret Helm-Duell <naturalindulgences wrote:

Hey Sharon,

 

>Hi Margret

>was thinking about you the other day and talking to Carla about the little

>hole in the wall we went to for supper

 

Ya, but it was a lot of FUN!

 

 

>Well we did get the Shea butter in and it is tested Grade A and B

 

That is great! I hope you'll have a good write up on your site when it's

done about the grading and all and how important the testing is. So did you

import seperate batches that graded differently? Or did the A and the B

come from the same shippment. I always wonder how that works out ya know.

I am happy for you that you have found a source for good butter.

 

>Carla ask about you all the time

 

Tell her I said " hi " and I should give her a call or email. I told her I

would test some of her fo's in soy candles. I took a hiatus from candle

making till we moved and am now getting going again.

 

 

>My web is under construction so she handles the Shea

>the grade a we carry has a high 9.09 unsaponifiable value which you know is

>great

 

Good luck with the web site. And yes, the 9.09 unsap is very good!! I may

have to buy some from you. hehehe

 

>Hope thing go great for you

>Sharon

>Shea butter tech

>saying hi

>to all soap buddy

 

Thanks, and same to you!

Margaret

 

_______________

Check out the latest news, polls and tools in the MSN 2004 Election Guide!

http://special.msn.com/msn/election2004.armx

 

 

 

 

Step By Step Instructions On Making Rose Petal Preserves:

http://www.av-at.com/stuff/rosejam.html

 

To adjust your group settings (i.e. go no mail) see the following link:

/join

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Hi Malinda,

 

 

>

>Does anyone happen to know if the Shea Butter at Agbanga Karite is

>tested ?

 

Yes they test thier butter, just not using ASBI.

 

 

hth,

Margaret

www.naturalindulgences.com

 

_______________

Get ready for school! Find articles, homework help and more in the Back to

School Guide! http://special.msn.com/network/04backtoschool.armx

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...