Olvea, a French supplier of vegetable oils for the cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industries, recently inaugurated a new factory in Burkina Faso. This new agro-industrial processing unit allows Olvea to increase the quality and quantity of the shea butter produced every year. Olvea also plans to become, within the next few months, the first company in Burkina Faso to be certified ISO 22000.

A greener plant

The new industrial site has been eco-conceived to be respectful of the local environment: 320m² of photovoltaic panels covering 20% of the energy used by the plant, bioclimatic architecture, use of local materials, innovative treatment of the Shea kernels, biomass boiler fuelled by shea cakes ...

New supply chains

The production process, flexible and semi-automated, allows the implementation of new production lines. Thus, Olvea will develop new agricultural supply chains and always offer more ingredients to the cosmetics and food industries.

Tuesday, April 19, 2016 took place the inauguration of Olvea’s new plant in Burkina Faso, in the presence of Stéphane Sanou, Minister of Trade, Industry and Handicrafts, representing the President of Burkina Faso, as well as ambassadors from France, Denmark and the European Union, and technical and financial partners of Olvea.

This development has already started this year, with the production of virgin organic sesame oil for the food industry, which cake is valued in the animal feed. Olvea is training the women’s cooperatives already producing shea nuts so that they will ensure the future sesame productions, which will guarantee them an additional source of income, and secured business opportunities.

Olvea is also working on the beeswax treatment, in partnership with cooperatives and beekeepers in order to ensure sustainable practices. This product, increasingly used by the cosmetics industry, represents a real ecological benefit: pollination is one of the major environmental challenges of this century.

New Burkina-native seeds supply chains will emerge over the coming years.