Shea Butter Supplier in the United States
Unrefined Grade A and refined N-RBD shea butter, manufactured in Ibadan, Nigeria and shipped to New York/Newark and Savannah and Los Angeles and Houston with a COA for every batch.
Summary
Nigerian shea butter for the United States
Shea is not grown in the United States. A formulator in the US who wants bulk shea butter is buying a Nigerian or West African fat, not a domestic oilseed. A formulator in Ohio or a filler in New Jersey is still buying a West African fat — there is no domestic shea crush. EMI Agro works with 5,000+ women collectors in Kwara, Niger, Kaduna, Kogi. Chicago buyers usually take the inland haul from New York/Newark.
Ask for a batch COA on a NIS 571:2013 basis: free fatty acid, peroxide value, moisture, color and melting point. Reject lots that smell sharply rancid or pour like liquid oil at room temperature. FDA filings sit with the the US importer — they do not replace a COA.
Trial lots start at 5 tonnes; standard orders start at 20 tonnes. Send the request even if you need less — EMI Agro reviews every United States enquiry against current production of 40 tonnes per week of finished shea butter and can schedule rolling shipments. Lead time is Ibadan production plus ocean time to New York/Newark. Quotes are EXW, FOB or CIF; each term prices different services beyond the butter.
Two questions. We show the grade, the documents that usually apply and the next step — we do not invent a price.
Why the United States buys Nigerian shea butter
The United States does not grow shea. Every drum of cosmetic or food-grade shea butter that a New Jersey filler, an Ohio formulator or a Texas distributor specifies is a West African fat — usually Nigerian — not a domestic oilseed. EMI Agro presses unrefined Grade A and refined N-RBD in Ibadan from wild-collected nuts gathered with 5,000+ women collectors in Kwara, Niger, Kaduna, Kogi, and loads at Apapa (Lagos) and Tin Can Island (Lagos) for New York/Newark, Savannah, Los Angeles or Houston.
US buyers treat shea as a specified vegetable fat, not a retail jar. The purchase order should name the grade, a NIS 571:2013 COA (free fatty acid, peroxide value, moisture, color, melting point) and the discharge port. FDA filings — MoCRA facility questions for finished cosmetics, Prior Notice and FSVP for food-use drums — sit with the United States importer. They do not replace the batch COA EMI Agro issues.
East and Gulf Coast boxes typically land at New York/Newark, Savannah or Houston (about 20–32 ocean days from Lagos). Los Angeles is the West Coast door and is a longer typical range (about 35–50 days). Chicago, Cleveland, Ohio and Atlanta take rail or truck from those coasts — there is no Great Lakes shea service. EMI Agro does not operate a US warehouse.
HTSUS 1515.90.21.00 (nut oils) is the line CBP ruling N362222 classifies for shea butter, Column 1 Free. Confirm the ten-digit statistical number on the entry date. EMI Agro does not compute landed duty or file the Importer Security Filing.
How to buy from EMI Agro in the United States
EMI Agro quotes EXW Ibadan, FOB Lagos or CIF New York/Newark (or another named US port). The three terms are not interchangeable prices: EXW is the butter at the factory gate; FOB adds Lagos load and export handling; CIF adds ocean freight and insurance to the named US port. Tell us which term you want.
Standard United States orders start at 20 tonnes. Trial lots start at 5 tonnes. If you need less, still send the request — we review every enquiry against current production of 40 tonnes per week of finished shea butter. Rolling shipments can be scheduled once a programme is named.
Lead time is Ibadan production plus ocean time to New York/Newark, Savannah, Los Angeles or Houston. Inland time to New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, Cleveland, Ohio and Atlanta is extra and sits with the importer unless the quote names a delivered arrangement. Use the container calculator to plan drums versus a 20 ft or 40 ft load, then confirm the fit on the quote.
Products available in the United States
Unrefined Grade A, refined N-RBD and shea press cake are available for the United States.
Cold-pressed, wild-collected unrefined Grade A shea butter from Ibadan, Nigeria: ivory to pale yellow, natural odour, produced to NIS 571:2013 with a Certificate of Analysis on every batch.
Refined N-RBD (neutralised, bleached, deodorised) shea butter: white to off-white, odourless, very low in free fatty acid, specified for food, cocoa butter equivalent, pharmaceutical excipient and neutral cosmetic bases.
The solid residue left after mechanical pressing of shea kernels at EMI Agro Industries, Ibadan: supplied in bulk as an input for animal feed, soap making and organic fertiliser or biomass.
Application notes for cosmetics sit on unrefined Grade A for cosmetics; food use sits on refined N-RBD for food manufacturing.
Shipping to the United States
EMI Agro quotes EXW, FOB, CIF for the United States; the buyer chooses.
| Port | UN/LOCODE | Transit (days) | Serves |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York/Newark | USNYC | 20–32 | New York, Chicago, Cleveland |
| Savannah | USSAV | 20–32 | Atlanta |
| Los Angeles | USLAX | 35–50 | Los Angeles |
| Houston | USHOU | 20–32 | Houston |
Container fit for a named format is confirmed on the quote. Use the shea export container calculator when that tool is live.
Regulatory & compliance in the United States
Shea butter imported into the United States is overseen by The Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022 (MoCRA) is the most significant expansion of FDA’s authority to regulate cosmetics since the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic (FD&C) Act was passed in 1938. Facility: any establishment (including an establishment of an importer) that manufactures or processes cosmetic products distributed in the United States. and FDA CFSAN administers FSMA food-facility registration, Prior Notice and the Foreign Supplier Verification Program for food imported into the United States.; customs clearance runs through U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) — entry via ACE. On January 26, 2009, the rule titled Importer Security Filing and Additional Carrier Requirements (commonly known as "10+2") went into effect. This rule applies to import cargo arriving to the United States by vessel..
Section 607(a) of the FD&C Act requires every person that owns or operates a facility that engages in the “manufacturing or processing of a cosmetic product for distribution in the United States” to register each facility with FDA. Notification: Cosmetics Direct is an electronic submissions portal for the registration & listing of cosmetic product facilities and products. Section 607(c) of the FD&C Act requires that for each cosmetic product, the responsible person submit to FDA “a cosmetic product listing.”.
MOQ, pricing basis & payment
- MOQ
- 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.
- Pricing basis
- Quoted per Incoterm. EXW, FOB and CIF attract different prices because each term adds different freight, insurance or local services beyond the shea butter itself.
- Samples
- Trial lots start at 5 tonnes of the named grade. Send the request even if you need less — we review whether we can supply.
Quotes for the United States are built from grade, packaging, Incoterm and port of discharge; tell us those four and we price the lane.
Certifications relevant to the United States
Status words are taken from the quality page. A mark that EMI does not hold is omitted, not listed as “not held”.
Why buyers in the United States choose EMI Agro
- NIS 571:2013 basis with AOCS / ISO methods
- In-house QC lab; a Certificate of Analysis with every batch
- Wild-collected shea nuts via a cooperative network; 5,000+ women collectors
- Direct manufacturer in Ibadan — see about EMI Agro and the sample COA
Buyer-type notes for this region sit on indie cosmetic brands.
City hubs we serve in United States
Related pages
Shea butter supplier in Canada
Manufacturer-direct bulk shea for Canada.
Shea butter supplier in the European Union
Manufacturer-direct bulk shea for the European Union.
Shea butter supplier in Germany
Manufacturer-direct bulk shea for Germany.
Shea butter supplier in France
Manufacturer-direct bulk shea for France.
Shea butter supplier by country
All published supplier pages.
Exporting shea butter from Nigeria
HS 1515.90, load ports and export documents.
Products
Unrefined Grade A, refined N-RBD and shea press cake.
Buyer type
How this market usually buys.
Frequently asked questions
Last reviewed September 2026 by EMI Agro Industries QC team.
Manufacturer-direct from Ibadan, Nigeria
Get a bulk shea butter quote for the United States
Unrefined Grade A or refined N-RBD, with a COA for the batch. Tell us grade, volume and the discharge port.
You have just read Shea Butter Supplier in the United States. 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.