About Blessed Organic Release
We are a registered organization that supports Shea butter farmers in the West-Nile part of Uganda. We also produce finished Shea butter products
Our Story
Blessed Organics Release started in 2004 shortly after the LRA war as the big (displacement) camps where broken down into to smaller ones. We were motivated to create this as an attempt to break the dependency mindset that had grown due to the generous donations from Organizations and well-wishers during the post war settlement. There was also a need was to campaign for the conservation of Shea trees because when people came out of the camps they had lost value of whatever was available to them.
We started with 25 women and challenged them with this new idea that would allow the them financial freedom for the long haul and allow them own their work. The mantra “Stop saying give me and start with what you have” was coined to encourage these women who were already deep in the dependency mindset always waiting on donations and handouts.
Our greatest advantage has been the abundance of Shea trees that are abundant in Northern Uganda on land that is communally owned with little interference from anyone so this made our start quite smooth. The cultural significance of Shea is profound in this area so the fruit is only picked from the ground and not the tree as it is believed that it contributes to the quality of the shea butter. It was originally used for babies and nursing mothers but predominantly for food. It is hot pressed, ground, boiled and then the oil is skimmed to be added in sauce(s). This played a big role in the products created by Blessed organics.
Growing our portfolio
We introduced Sesame which is predominant in the region as a major food crop which was easily adapted familiar as a commercial product. The farmers however needed training on farming methods that maintain the organic integrity of the sesame as is the standard for our main consumer for both Shea and Sesame which is Europe. This led Blessed Organics Release into getting the EU organic certificate that allows us to export to these countries.
As the community continued to grow, we made groups of 25-30 farmers with each baring a code number that is trackable in case of a product that does not meet the standards or any pest/pesticide issue.
Production
A central processing facility was set up that meets the local and international standard easing value addition and safe processing and packaging of the end products. When the produce arrives at this central station in Pader, it is weighed, sorted, graded and dried until the moisture content is ready for pressing. To accurately account for the entire product, the raw material is weighed against the oil and the cake (residue) so that it is clear on how much end products can be created with a given amount of raw material. Among the products created are pure Shea butter for body care, baby care, Baby oil and hair oil from Shea and Sesame cakes, cookies, paste and baby oil from sesame.
As we made these products we discovered that Shea is a zero waste product in that even the residue is used to make charcoal briquettes used as fuel for cooking. Whenever we make such innovations it is paramount to involve the community that also empowers them to learn an integrate these safer and environmentally friendly methods to their daily life.
Mentorship
In a bid to involve the youth, a mentorship program called Mama Kwonya was conceptualized where one mother/woman is placed with two youth for whom she is accountable. This program has been successful as the wages for each mentoring mother is tied to the output of her mentees which creates a healthy competition among the groups fostering new products such as Chia seeds, Soya beans, Black beans and Shea honey. The youth are also responsible for distributing some products around the community.
Blessed Organics has grown to 6000 farmers and collectors whose produce is over and above the current market available to consume however it has positively impacted the mission to conserve Shea trees
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