Organic and Fair Trade certification for shea butter opens doors to new markets and increase wages by 3 to 4 times. But the upfront investment can be out of reach for smallholder farmers. Thanks to UN funding that gap was closed in 2021. The initial seed investment to cover year one of certification was provided by the UN , allowing the women the runway to earn and save to cover the annual fees moving forward. Read more about this story on the UN website here.