Skip to content
EMI Agro Industries logo
Agro IndustriesShea Butter Manufacturer, Nigeria
Free tool

Shea Butter COA Interpreter

Type the numbers from any supplier's certificate, pick the grade it claims, and see what is in range, what is not, and what to ask next.

Summary

Enter the nine standard shea butter parameters from any supplier’s Certificate of Analysis and the grade the paper claims. The interpreter flags values that sit outside published ECOWAS grade bands or literature identity ranges, states what each deviation means, and writes the questions to send back. It is for buyers, QC teams and brand founders reading a first COA. It does not authenticate the document.

The calculator

How the interpreter reads a COA

A shea butter COA is read in two passes: FFA, peroxide value and moisture tell you the batch’s condition against its grade; saponification value, refractive index, iodine value and unsaponifiables tell you whether it is pure shea at all.

Quality parameters are compared with the claimed grade’s published ECOWAS ceilings — the same thresholds the grade checker uses. Above the ceiling is “high”; below a floor, where one exists, is “low”. Identity parameters are compared with shea’s published literature ranges regardless of grade. Saponification value or refractive index outside range raises an adulteration flag. Iodine value, unsaponifiables or melting point outside range is an identity anomaly to verify, not an automatic reject.

Colour is compared with the expectation for the product type: unrefined butter is ivory to yellow; refined N-RBD is white to off-white. Missing parameters are listed as “not reported” and generate a question. If FFA, peroxide value and saponification value are all missing, the verdict is insufficient data. To learn the certificate line by line, see how to read a shea butter COA and EMI Agro’s own Certificate of Analysis page.

Published regional / literature bands — not EMI QC limits. The COA governs. Refined N-RBD contractual limits are not published here.
ParameterUnitGrade AGrade BGrade CRefined N-RBDIdentity rangeMethod
Free fatty acid (FFA)% (as oleic acid)≤ 10–30–8——AOCS Ca 5a-40
Peroxide value (PV)meq O₂/kg≤ 100–150–50——AOCS Cd 8-53
Moisture and volatiles%≤ 0.050–0.20–2——AOCS Ca 2b-38
Refractive indexat 40 °C————1.463–1.467ISO 6320
Saponification valuemg KOH/g————170–195AOCS Cd 3-25
Unsaponifiable matter%————4–11AOCS Ca 6a-40
Slip melting point°C————32–45AOCS Cc 3-25
Colourvisual grade—————AOCS Cc 13e-92
Iodine valueg I₂/100 g————52–66AOCS Cd 1-25

ECOWAS Grade 1 FFA ≤ 1 %; Grade 1 PV ≤ 10 meq/kg; Grade 1 moisture ≤ 0.05 %. Identity ranges from published literature (Firestone / Honfo reviews).

Worked example

Claimed Grade A. FFA 1.4 %, peroxide value 9 meq/kg, moisture 0.08 %, saponification value 198 mg KOH/g, refractive index 1.466, unsaponifiables 6 %, melting point 36 °C, iodine value 58, colour pale yellow.

FFA 1.4 % is high for Grade A (ceiling 1.0 %) and is consistent with Grade B. Peroxide value is in range. Moisture is high against the Grade A ceiling of 0.05 %. Saponification value 198 sits slightly above the identity range 170–195 and raises an adulteration flag to verify. Refractive index, unsaponifiables, melting point and iodine value are in range. Colour is consistent with unrefined butter.

Verdict: inconsistent with claimed Grade A, and a possible adulteration signal on saponification value — verify. The generated questions ask whether the certificate is batch-specific, what FFA was at intake, how the lot was stored, and for a gas-chromatography fatty-acid profile.

Assumptions and limits

Ranges are published ECOWAS and literature figures. Another supplier’s contract may specify differently — compare with the range on your purchase specification. A COA is only as good as its sampling: ask whether it is batch-specific. Small excursions on saponification value or refractive index can be method or laboratory variance; a flag means verify, not reject.

If the certificate reports acid value instead of FFA, divide by 1.99 for FFA as oleic, or use the FFA titration calculator. Colour is descriptive; Lovibond values are not interpreted. The tool does not authenticate stamps, signatures or laboratory accreditation. Refined N-RBD columns show a dash because EMI Agro does not publish contractual refined limits here. Use the batch Certificate of Analysis.

Reading the verdict

Consistent means proceed, then request a retained sample for your own test. Inconsistent with the claimed grade means negotiate on the measured grade or request a different lot. Possible adulteration means request a gas-chromatography fatty-acid profile and unsaponifiable matter before payment — see saponification value, refractive index and signs of adulterated shea butter. Insufficient data means send the generated questions; a serious supplier answers within a day.

See a real EMI Agro certificate layout on the Certificate of Analysis page. To grade a sample you can see and smell, use the grade checker. Grade names are explained on shea butter grades.

All free shea butter tools

FFA, grade, COA, lye, caustic dose, container, units and blend.

Complete guide to shea butter

Origin, grades, specifications and bulk supply.

Shea Butter Grade Checker

Enter FFA, peroxide value, moisture and what you see and smell to get an indicative Grade A, B or C.

FFA Titration Calculator

Convert titre volume, normality and sample weight into free fatty acid % and acid value.

Free Fatty Acid (FFA)

What FFA measures in shea butter, why it rises in kernels, and how it is tested.

Peroxide Value (PV)

Peroxide value as the first oxidation marker in shea butter storage.

Moisture Content

Moisture and volatiles in shea butter and why a tight band matters.

Refractive Index

Refractive index at 40 °C as an identity check for shea butter.

Saponification Value

Saponification value as a chain-length and identity parameter.

Unsaponifiable Matter

The unsaponifiable fraction that distinguishes shea from cheaper hard fats.

Melting Point

Slip melting point and how it governs shea butter skin feel.

Colour Grading

Colour as an appearance specification, not a grade.

Iodine Value

Iodine value as an unsaturation and identity check.

how-to-read-a-shea-butter-coa

Frequently asked questions

References & standards

  1. AOCS Official Methods Ca 5a-40, Cd 8-53, Ca 2b-38, Cc 7-25, Cd 3-25, Ca 6a-40, Cc 3-25, Cd 1-25 — American Oil Chemists' Society
  2. ISO 660, ISO 3960, ISO 662, ISO 6320, ISO 3657, ISO 3596, ISO 6321, ISO 3961 — International Organization for Standardization
  3. NIS 571:2013 — Shea butter — Standards Organisation of Nigeria
  4. Firestone, D. (ed.). Physical and Chemical Characteristics of Oils, Fats, and Waxes — AOCS Press
  5. Honfo, F. G. et al. (2014). Nutritional composition of shea products and chemical properties of shea butter: a review — Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition

Last reviewed September 2026 by EMI Agro Industries QC team.

Manufacturer-direct from Ibadan, Nigeria

Not sure about that certificate? Compare it with ours.

Request a current, batch-specific Certificate of Analysis for Grade A unrefined or refined N-RBD shea butter — nine parameters, methods stated, lot number included.

You have just read Shea Butter COA Interpreter. 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.

Request a quoteSee a sample EMI Agro COA