Shea Butter for Private-Label Buyers
Bulk shea butter for your own brand: the formats and minimums we ship, the lead time, and the label data that comes with every lot.
Summary
EMI Agro supplies private-label buyers with unrefined Grade A and refined N-RBD shea butter in bulk formats. Each lot can carry the labelling data an own-brand pack needs — INCI Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, botanical name Vitellaria paradoxa (syn. Butyrospermum parkii), country of origin Nigeria — plus a batch Certificate of Analysis. Formats, minimums per format and lead time are confirmed on the quote. EMI supplies bulk; filling and retail-label printing are planned with you or your co-packer. See all buyer types we supply.
- Recommended grades
- Unrefined Grade A · Refined N-RBD
- Minimum / entry order
- Standard orders start at 20 tonnes. Trial lots start at 5 tonnes. Smaller volumes can still be requested — we review every enquiry against current production.
- Lead time
- Lead time is Ibadan production time plus ocean time to the named port. EMI Agro produces 40 tonnes per week of finished shea butter and can schedule rolling shipments. Exact weeks depend on the quantity on the purchase order.
- Certifications relevant to you
- NAFDAC registered, SON approved, USDA NOP (Organic) in pursuit, EU Organic (EOS) in pursuit, COSMOS in pursuit
- Start with
- Request a quote
What matters to private-label buyers
Formats that match the repacking plan: pails for hand-filling, drums for a co-packer's line, and minimums per format that fit a first run. Those minimums are confirmed on the quote.
Predictable lead time: the launch date depends on it. Know the lead time by format and order size before you print a campaign. Custom marks on drums, if offered, can extend it.
Labelling data that is complete and consistent lot to lot: INCI, batch code, production date, best-before, origin — printed on the buyer's pack and traceable back to EMI's COA. A private-label shea buyer needs four things printed on every tub — INCI, batch code, production date and best-before — and needs them from the supplier.
Consistency the customer can see: the buyer's customer opens the tub and sees the butter itself. Colour and scent must match between lots. Write both into the brief you approve against the sample.
Remaining shelf life at delivery, so the retail best-before date is commercially useful, and clarity on who does what. EMI supplies bulk and documents; filling, labelling and retail compliance sit with the brand owner unless a filling offer is agreed in writing.
Recommended product and specifications
Most own-brand "pure shea" products use unrefined Grade A. White, odourless own-brand bases use refined N-RBD. What customers notice — colour, scent, texture at room temperature — is explained on colour grading and melting point. The lot free-fatty-acid value is on the COA you can quote to customers.
Unrefined Grade A Shea Butter
Most own-brand pure shea tubs.
Refined N-RBD Shea Butter
White, odourless own-brand bases.
Specification tables for your product type
Unrefined Grade A for Cosmetics
Unrefined Grade A shea butter for cosmetics: INCI, 2–20 % inclusion, 4–11 % unsaponifiables and the FFA, PV and colour specs to request.
Unrefined Grade A for Body Butter & Lotion
Unrefined Grade A shea butter for body butter and lotion: whipping behaviour, graininess control, emulsion loading and the specs to request.
Refined N-RBD for Cosmetics
Refined N-RBD shea butter for cosmetics: white, odourless, low-FFA butter for colour-critical, fragrance-sensitive skincare.
Refined N-RBD for Body Butter & Lotion
Refined N-RBD shea butter for body butter and lotion: texture and slip after refining, whipping structure, and the melting-point spec to request.
Parameters to quote on your spec sheet:
MOQ, format, lead time and certifications
- Certifications
- NAFDAC registered, SON approved, USDA NOP (Organic) in pursuit, EU Organic (EOS) in pursuit, COSMOS in pursuit
- INCI
- Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter
- Botanical name
- Vitellaria paradoxa (syn. Butyrospermum parkii)
- Manufacturer
- EMI Agro Industries Limited, Ibadan
Formats and the minimum per format, lead time, Incoterms, payment, shelf life and remaining life at delivery are confirmed on the quote. See the products hub for the packaging conversation.
Labelling data EMI provides with every lot
Confirmed identity for the label: INCI Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter; botanical name Vitellaria paradoxa (syn. Butyrospermum parkii); country of origin Nigeria; manufacturer EMI Agro Industries Limited, Ibadan. Batch or lot code, production date, best-before, storage and net weight are supplied with the lot documents when that pack is agreed. A batch COA and TDS support any quality statement the buyer prints.
A "pure shea butter" sold for skin use is a cosmetic product in the EU, UK and US. The private-label buyer becomes the brand owner responsible for notification and labelling — EU Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 Article 19 labelling elements, UK SCPN, US MoCRA. The documents section on shea butter for indie cosmetic brands covers the raw-material file. Destination import notes are confirmed on enquiry.
What EMI does and does not do
EMI does: supply bulk shea butter in the formats on the quote; provide labelling data and a COA per lot; hold a consistent grade lot to lot against the agreed specification.
EMI does not: register or notify the buyer's finished product; design retail packaging; authorise organic or COSMOS claims while those certifications remain in pursuit. Retail filling and retail-label printing are arranged on the quote if you need them — do not assume jars will arrive filled.
Certification status is NAFDAC registered, SON approved, USDA NOP (Organic) in pursuit, EU Organic (EOS) in pursuit, COSMOS in pursuit. What may be printed on the buyer's pack about EMI's status is the status word, not a certificate EMI does not hold. See quality and certifications explained. EMI ships bulk butter with identity and lot data on the documents; the private-label buyer puts them on the tub.
Why EMI Agro for private-label buyers
Manufacturer direct: the butter in the tub is pressed by EMI, so the origin story the buyer prints can be EMI's own — cooperative network, Ibadan facility — with approved wording on request. Two grades from one supplier cover a natural line and a white line.
The same COA and labelling identity at any order size once those documents are on the pack. Quality, about.
Not quite you? If you formulate your own products with shea butter rather than sell it as shea butter, see Shea butter for indie cosmetic brands. This page is written for private-label buyers.
Related pages
Indie Cosmetic Brands
Formulating products that contain shea, not selling shea as shea.
Distributors & Wholesalers
Reselling ingredient to other businesses.
Products
Packaging conversation and both butter grades.
Unrefined Grade A shea butter
The usual own-brand pure shea grade.
Refined N-RBD shea butter
White own-brand bases.
Sample to container
From approved sample to first container.
Import guides
Destination labelling and notification.
Quality
What you may print about EMI's status.
Frequently asked questions
References & standards
- Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, Article 19 — labelling of cosmetic products — EUR-Lex (accessed 13 September 2026)
- Cosmetic product labelling and SCPN guidance — UK OPSS / GOV.UK (accessed 13 September 2026)
- Cosmetic labelling and MoCRA overview — US FDA (accessed 13 September 2026)
- CosIng — Butyrospermum Parkii Butter — European Commission (accessed 13 September 2026)
Last reviewed September 2026 by EMI Agro Industries QC team.
Manufacturer-direct from Ibadan, Nigeria
Tell us the pack size you sell and how many you need.
We will quote by format with the lead time, and confirm the labelling data and COA that come with every lot.
You have just read Shea Butter for Private-Label Buyers. The next step is a real lot from the factory that produces it — EMI Agro, with factory-direct pricing and a batch Certificate of Analysis.
Trusted manufacturer
EMI Agro Industries Limited (RC 9364495) presses the butter in Ibadan — we are not a trading company.
Competitive factory-direct prices
Quoted EXW, FOB or CIF — the buyer chooses. You pay the factory, not a chain of middlemen.
Export-ready supply
We ship to European Union, United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Southeast Asia, China, India, Middle East, Latin America. Load ports: Apapa (Lagos) or Tin Can Island (Lagos).
Documented lots
40 tonnes per week of finished shea butter, a Certificate of Analysis on every batch, NAFDAC registered and SON approved.