Noelle Barber

Noelle has been following the lessons from coffee from the first taste of an Ethiopian Yirgacheffe that launched her fascination with the drink. She got started in the industry as a barista, moved in to wholesale business supply and production, with a goal of working in coffee importing. In her travels to Cuba, Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Palestine and Egypt, both tea and coffee consistently showed up as important elements of hospitality and community care.

Today, Noelle supports green coffee sales through the Black Producers Program, an initiative of BD Imports to bring visibility to Black coffee producers and broaden their access to the global market. Noelle also operates Flowers and Coffee, a coffee and tea stand in Jacksonville, FL, with an event series highlighting the communal nature of preparing and sharing coffee.