Thinking globally, roasting locally

Sweetwater Organic Coffee is Florida's vanguard Organic and Fair Trade Coffee Roaster. Company founders Chris Neumann and Nora Edison share a life long passion for and fascination with specialty coffee, and have been active in the American Organic Fair Trade Community since becoming aware of Fair Trade Coffee while traveling in The Netherlands in 1998.

Before moving to Gainesville, Chris and Nora lived in New York City, Boston , California and the Hudson Valley where both were Professional Artists and Educators. Nora was Label manager for Boston's legendary Ace of Hearts Records and served as assistant to tap dancer extraordinaire Savion Glover in addition to co-founding the legendary New York Underground Music and Poetry Festival. As a young person, Chris had the privilege of working for specialty coffee Guru George Howell's late-great shrine to specialty java: THE COFFEE CONNECTION. Later, Chris toured the world with his original band CHAOTIC PAST (Ace of Hearts Records).While living in the Hudson Valley, Chris served as Roast Master at Catskill Mountain Coffee in Woodstock, NY and Nora worked for Community Theatre For Social Change impresario Jonathan Fox's International Not For Profit, The School of Playback Theatre in New Paltz, NY.

The vision

Sweetwater Organic Coffee is Chris and Nora's vision of a New Century Organic Coffee Company that not only roasts the best coffee in Florida, but serves the community as well. We are committed to sustainability on every level, from our recycled disposables, computer systems and building materials to our pledge to donate 10% of after tax earning to charitable endeavors here at home and in the coffee producing world.

At Sweetwater, we roast in absurdly small batches to bring out the Terroir nuance and quality of each special bean we roast and name the Cooperative Producer of every coffee we offer. Sweetwater considers the Farmer Producers that grow our beans as partners in our business, Sweetwater works with only the MOST responsible Importers: Royal Coffee, Elan Organic Coffee and Knutsen Coffees LTD are primary suppliers.

Sweetwater's fresh, delicious Shade Grown Organic coffees come from around the world and are small-batch Artisan Roasted TO ORDER daily in Gainesville, Florida. We shop the globe to bring you the World's Finest Environmentally and Socially responsible beans, so our coffee offerings rotate seasonally depending on what's available. We roast our beans on 2 machines: Our brand new PROBAT L-12 and a Diedrich IR-24.

Certified roaster

Sweetwater Organic Coffee is Certified Organic by Florida Organic Growers and Quality Certification Services and Certified Fair Trade by Transfair USA. We are proud members and supporters of the Specialty Coffee Association of America, The Roasters Guild, The Organic Trade Association, SLOW FOOD USA and OXFAM.