SeaShea Ltd

PROBLEM:- Food production and land use are major challenges to food security in Nigeria. In addition to the long-term undernutrition in Nigeria, the outcome is the compromised health of the public, low immunity levels and poor cognitive development of children.

  THE INNOVATION-Using Seaweed and Sheabutter As Baking Ingredients for Bread and Pastries.

 Seaweed, a water-based raw material has the potential to become the number one sustainable protein source of the future which can be cultured in a sustainable way without using scarce agricultural land. 

Sheabutter, from shea nuts, is popularly used as a skincare ingredient but neglected as a food ingredient, meanwhile, Sheabutter is vegan-friendly, rich in antioxidants, vitamins, low in monosaturated, polyunsaturated and saturated fats and has zero cholesterol so when enhanced with seaweed powder,  a superfood which boosts the immune system is created therefore increasing consumer demand, purchase, and consumption of fortified, affordable, safe and nutritious food.

https://globalnutritionreport....

According to UNICEF (2021), an estimated 2 million children suffer from severe acute malnutrition and this is the direct or underlying cause of 45% of deaths in under 5-year-olds in Nigeria. In addition, 49.8% of women of childbearing age suffer from anaemia. The high rates of malnutrition in the form of stunting and wasting create a significant public health and developmental challenges.

https://www.unicef.org/nigeria...

Raw material for food production and land use are major challenges to food security in Nigeria. This has been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic which caused disruptions to the food supply chain

in Nigeria due to the consequent community lockdowns as well as restrictions put in place to manage health risks. The disruptions across the food value chain and led to farmers, fishermen and food processors finding it difficult to cultivate, process and distribute food. The resulting shortage of raw
materials, increase in lead times, reduced productivity and higher costs have led to acute food shortages and scarcity of regular staples like onions and tomatoes. The outcome of food shortages is compromised health of the public, low immunity levels and poor cognitive development of children.https://globalnutritionreport....

The Innovation: Using Seaweed And Sheabutter as Baking Ingredients for Bread And Pastries.
Seaweed has the potential to become the number one source of protein of the future due to its high content of qualitative proteins and it can be cultured in a sustainable way without using scarce agricultural land. 

Enhancing sheabutter with seaweed powder creates a superfood and promoting it as edible oil and baking fat to a wider target market of natural foods consumers and the food industry in Nigeria increase consumer demand, purchase and consumption of affordable, safe and nutritious food. Sheabutter is vegan-friendly, rich in antioxidants, vitamins, low in monosaturated, polyunsaturated and saturated fats and has zero cholesterol. 

The project involves working with the Ilaje fishing community to harvest seaweed and use it with sheabutter for making affordable, high protein bread and pastries. The waste from seaweed processing will promote biodiversity when used as fertilizer for shea trees parklands restoration and the production of seaweed/sheabutter based skincare products.
Seanexus Ltd has developed technology to farm seaweed and the feasibility to use the technology within the fishing community to guarantee future supply of seaweed will be explored.

This innovation promotes SDGs 1, 5, & 8

Seaweed can be cultivated with an even higher yield than the existing top 3 crops (rice, corn and wheat). Perhaps in 2050, there will be vast sea fields providing proteins from seaweed which is the most important protein source for human beings, animal and industries.

The first target group is the fishing community and the project can provide alternative livelihoods for them, and the population at large will have access to high protein bread. Bread is a major staple food in Nigeria consumed daily in every home. Therefore enriching bread with the use of seaweed and sheabutter as core ingredients increase the demand, purchase and consumption of safe, nutritious bread and pastries. This will improve the health of many people(especially children) in the country and boost their immunity levels.

Then the women will be able to engage more vigorously in the primary production, processing of seaweed near the coast in the Bight of Benin.

As the wellness industry is projected to increase by $5.45 trillion in 2022, the second target group is women of 25 years and above, who are health-conscious, healthy, conscientious and trendy so they buy and eat nutritional and low-calorie foods to maintain the fad diet called, 'clean eating'.
In addition:-
They seek to repair and maintain their good skin;
They are a cross-cut of African Nationalities;
They are relatively educated and aware of trends in the natural and beauty industry;
They represent the capacity to market our Seaweed/Shea Butter Products through word of mouth;
They shop at open markets, health/natural products stores, chain stores and nationwide stores like Shoprite, Miniso and Marketsquare where our products are sold. They will buy and recommend these products to their family and friends.

Community Engagements

At the rural level, we have an active community engagement programme with the fishing community leaders and the shea processing villages. This engagement takes the form of meetings, training in field and off field, the registration of the smallholders into co-operatives and provision of PPE within our capacity.

 In the urban cities, we solicit feedback from customers by offering them incentives such as opportunities to participate in draws and win prizes. They get feedback cards with our social media handles at every purchase.
Customer service officers also engage with customers via our social media pages and WhatsApp account. Another avenue is SMS surveys and email marketing.

SCALABILITY OF PROJECT

This project will increase our processing and production capacity from 11.5 metric tons of sheabutter and seaweed in 2021 to 87 metric tons by 2023.

Sales will be boosted by increasing national footprint, optimizing and enhancing our current supply chain structure, and by aggressive and effective marketing of the brand to the trade and consumers.

A performance-based incentive scheme and wholesale loyalty programs to reward customers and the direct sales force will increase stock pressure in trade and drive shelf activity in outlets. The price is market-driven, but our products are quality controlled and presented in superior packaging. 

The project will create job opportunities in the value chains of all related sectors such as the fishing
community, seaweed farmers, women sheabutter processors, bread sellers, food technologists and nutritionists, logistics, printing and packaging, digital marketing and services.

Raw material for food production and land use are major challenges to food security in Nigeria. Seaweed which has the potential to become the number one source of protein of the future can be cultured in a sustainable way without using scarce agricultural land. Seaweed can be cultivated with an even higher yield than the existing top 3 crops (rice, corn and wheat). Perhaps in 2050, there will be vast sea fields of seaweed providing
high-quality protein for human beings, animals and industries.
The waste from seaweed can be used as a biofertilizer for shea parklands and other farms.

Sheatherapy Ltd is already in the market selling natural skincare products with sheabutter as their core ingredient under the brand name Ariella Sheabutter. 

Seanexus Ltd
After 12 years of research work in cooperation with industries like Technip Bureau Veritas, Malaysia and British governments grants, Prof. Dr Sulaiman Olanrewaju decided to commercialize the findings gained in order to benefit and impact people and the environment.

However, the recent approval by the FDA permitting the use of shea olein in the manufacturing and distribution of US food products inspired the introduction of sheabutter as a food ingredient.

SeaShea Ltd is our JV company for developing a superfood, a combination of Seaweed and Sheabutter for cooking and baking that meets the increase in global and local demand for natural, healthy and non-synthetic vegetable oils and fats in foods. It has been estimated that the global organic market will be worth $323 billion by 2024.

SeaShea Ltd has the competitive advantage of being the first company in Nigeria to combine seaweed and shea butter food use thereby creating a superfood that boosts immunity, combats malnutrition which in the form of stunting and wasting is the direct and underlying cause of 45% of deaths in under 5-year-olds in Nigeria. 

Discussions are ongoing with Funding organizations for both debt and equity financing and some food companies in Malaysia and UK (for joint venture partnership) to set up a large scale food manufacturing company in Nigeria for the production of healthy snacks, sandwiches, sauces, desserts and juices made from seaweed and sheabutter which will be sold locally, regionally and exported to the international market in the next 3 years.

 The health and wellness industry is growing rapidly and is expected to be worth $5.45 trillion by 2022. This is due to the increasing demand for healthier food and skincare products. It also promotes SDGs 1, 5 & 8.

OUTCOMES

Sales will be boosted by increasing national footprint, optimizing and enhancing our current supply chain structure, and by aggressive and effective marketing of the brand to the trade and consumers. A performance-based incentive scheme and wholesale loyalty programs to reward customers and the direct sales force will increase stock pressure in trade and drive shelf activity in outlets. The price is market-driven, but our products are quality controlled and presented in superior packaging.

The solution is at the proof of concept stage currently serving 300 people from industries and knowledge institute to  engaged in various development activities 

SDG will ne used as indicator to measure implementation, this is include associated resilience related to prevention and reduction of marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution, achieved by planting seaweed. Measurement of reduced ocean acidification will be conducted during the project.  Improved in quality of life will me measured to for increase the economic benefits. measurement of environmental health will be measure  from enhanced conservation of water space. 

Full-time staff-20

Contractors-10

Seasonal workers -300+

https://seanexus.netlify.app

 This project is led by 2 experts whose life visions are to make a maximum social impact on people and their environment.

After 12 years of research work in cooperation with industries like Technip Bureau Veritas, Malaysia and British governments grants, Prof Dr Sulaiman Olanrewaju decided to commercialize the findings gained through this. The best research work will not benefit the general public unless the findings are used to benefit and impact people and the environment.
Prof Dr Sulaiman Olanrewaju has a doctorate in marine technology, safety and environmental risk modelling and risk engineering as well as additional training in Business incubation. He has 20 years of research experience in marine technology, science and ocean engineering, speciality technology for
seaweed cultivation.
As the Director of this project, he will engage and work with the fishing community in Ilaje for the cultivation and harvesting of the 'Seanxus' seaweed.
University of Nottingham Nutrition Group: Collaboration to develop and run trials with seaweed and sheabutter recipes.

  Ndidi Nkwopara is result-oriented, conscientious and efficient. As the
Managing Director of Sheatherapy Ltd, she has managed the growth and overall efficiency of the company by utilizing her having excellent communication, strong supervisory and marketing skills. In this role, she has formulated and implemented brand strategies as well marketing/sales strategies which were instrumental to the growth of STL Ltd. Additionally, She enabled effective sustainability and product safety program which inculcates industry health & safety standards and contributes to the achievement of SDG1, 2 & 8.

The project will create job opportunities in the value chains of all related sectors such as the fishing
community, seaweed farmers, women sheabutter processors, bread sellers, food technologists and nutritionists, logistics, printing and packaging, digital marketing and services.

Women Economic Empowerment programme:

A business development service for women shea collectors and establishment of a pilot project aimed at improving health and safety processes and standard of Shea Collectors Processors who are predominantly female in New Bussa-Kainji, Niger State Nigeria. This programme enables an effective sustainability and product safety program which inculcates industry health & safety standards and contributes to the achievement of SDG1, 2 & 8 by purchasing directly from the local (women producers) to enhance their economic well being.

Our solution provide human, environmental and sustainable tech-based solution to global Challenges by planting seaweed to repair nature and by harvesting and process the seaweed to fortify shea products and reciprocal provision of enhanced healthy products. 

The solution target Africa where this kind of technology has never been used and team bring gender balance in the management of the project.

The solution has passed key activities at research  and concept stage and and working on pilot and scale up of the technology.

We would like to partner with coastal community, by including them in in the project to safeguard implementation

We would like to partner with digital community, software providers to install various monitoring systems to assess and improve performance of pour activities and products

We would like to partners with;

coastal community- they useful for getting seaweed out of water

user of shea- fortification of shea with seaweed will  provide more healthy product 

user of seaweed- excess seaweed with be sold to them

digital community- monitoring to improve yield and performance is essential 

Resilient ecosystems.

The projects supports women empowerment.

The project promotes climate change.

Our project promotes resilient ecosystems.

installation of monitoring and control  systems

To help solve nutrition problems