In your search for organic beauty products, you will have observed that many skincare products are made with Shea Butter or Cocoa Butter. Let’s find out how these two organic ingredients differ from each other and whether one performs the best!

The Source

Firstly, Shea Butter is from Africa and Cocoa Butter is from South America.

Shea Butter is obtained from the nut borne by the shea tree and Cocoa Butter from the cocoa bean.

The cocoa tree (or cacao tree - Theobroma cacao) is indigenously found in the tropical zone of South and Central America, whereas the shea tree is found solely in Africa.

Shea and Cocoa Butter are both organic plant-based fats, full of nutrients and vitamins that are great for your skin.

Both of them are made from the extracts of their fruit pits. Though the method employed is different, both utilise pressure.

Shea nuts are subjected to gentle boiling for a few hours before being dried in the sun. Then they are turned into a paste by grinding. The fat is obtained from the paste and then churned to make butter.

When it comes to cocoa butter, it is extracted by using an expeller, a hydraulic press or an extrusion. Since none of these methods require any solvents or hexane, they produce unrefined butter that retains its distinctive scent and colour. (The smell of cocoa is strong and delightful!)

Scent and Appearance

 This post covers the properties of UNREFINED Shea and Cocoa Butter, meaning that bleaches, hexane or synthetic solvents are not added in them to alter their makeup in any way.

Both of the products keep the fundamental features of their respective fruits after being turned into butters. The colour of Unrefined Shea Butter is white-ish. Though the shade of different harvests vary, the colour remains on the white to cream spectrum. The aroma of Shea butter is nut-like and smokey. Unrefined Cocoa Butter has a tinge of brown to it, making it deeper in colour. Its aroma is strong, pleasant, and chocolatey.

Shea Butter is soft, meaning it is easily moldable. You may break off a piece using your fingers and then make it softer with a spoon fork. With an electric mixer, it may be whipped to create body butters. Shea Butter melts on the skin on touch.

Cocoa butter is solid. It might need a little more rubbing than shea butter to melt in between palms.

Treatment for Skin Issues

We have served thousands of clients from all over India. Though we haven’t had our Shea and Cocoa Butter clinically tested, and cannot scientifically assure that our product can act as a remedy for skin issues, we have had dozen of customer reviews that say the following about our Shea Butter:

Unrefined Shea Butter, when used by itself and not in combination with any other ingredient, has treated theirs and their infant’s eczema.

The common thread amongst these reviews is that they wanted a natural product for their eczema, as opposed to lotions or creams from supermarket shelves that contain many artificial/chemical components. The customers were looking for a treatment that was kind to the skin and didn’t come with side effects. That’s when they found Shea Butter.

Unrefined Shea Butter does not block pores (i.e. it is non-comedogenic), even though it is very high in fat. This makes it a desirable option for those who have frequent acne breakouts.

The simple definition of acne is aggravated skin. Such skin requires a soothing product. Shea Butter works as a great organic moisturiser and doesn’t further irritate the skin. As per many reviews, it has lessened the number of breakouts with sustained usage.

Unrefined Cocoa Butter is the top choice for stretch marks treatment (this is from our in-house cumulative experience as we are yet to "officially" launch our cocoa butter). The evidence of this is that the supermarket lotions for stretch marks all contain some percentage of Cocoa Butter. This powerfully markets the efficacy of Cocoa Butter.

Cocoa Butter seeps into the top layer of the skin and the dermis layer without too much effort. These layers are where the body keeps much of its moisture. Since Cocoa Butter is abundant in Vitamins A and E and stearic acid, it will penetrate into the scarred portions of your skin and gradually alleviate the appearance of the scars.

Tell us in the comments below about your experiences with our Shea Butter and eventually Cocoa Butter. What uses have you put them to, and do you like them better as stand-alone products or as part of DIY skincare products? We would love to hear from you!

To know about our Unrefined Mango Butter, click here.

To view all the butters we offer, click here.