Senegal likes peanuts. So much so that last year's peanut harvest yielded 625,000 tons. That's a lot of nuts.
Peanuts are such an integral part of Senegalese society. They provide 75% of the national agricultural production and employ 50% of the population.
So buy Jiffy Pop! Support Senegal... Not really, nearly all of Senegal's peanuts go to the UK. Hmmm...Cadbury must be up to something.
Much of the peanut crop is exported to various countries, but what is kept in Senegal is used for replanting and consumption. Peanuts are found in numerous Senegalese dishes and many women roast and bag peanuts to sell as snacks.
Shelling peanuts by hand takes hours. It's extremely laborious and often requires most of the women in the family to complete. Families will often buy several kilos and shell them over the course of a few days and then resell them for a small profit or keep them for consumption.
Where does this sheller come in? As a way to add value to crops for women. And since raising the value of a product corresponds directly to increased income, there is more money to go around.
This sheller is equal to 41 women shelling peanuts by hand. This suggests cooperatives would be able to increase output or use the freed up time to produce another product. For example, turning the peanuts in peanut butter. Furthermore, as domestic responsibilities are freed up, young girls have a great chance to attend school and finish school.
A Peace Corps volunteer found the designs for this sheller and contacted the manufactures. After introducing it to his site, he determined it was worthy of spreading across Senegal. And now we are in the phase of gaining interest and finding buyers.
Using locally sourced materials, it can be built for around $65, which is well with in the reach of most cooperatives
Last week, this sheller went on tour and stopped at my site. I invited several women's groups to come and and test out the machine. And they loved it! They couldn't stop clucking about it. By the end of my expo, I had 9 potential orders and I do hope most of them actually buy one
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