Leading Fundamentalist Christian Group Launches Roastery

Facebook photo

The American Family Association, a leading conservative fundamentalist Christian organization with a 2011 budget of more than $16 million, has gotten into the coffee roasting game with the opening of Thomas Street Coffee Co.

The Tupelo, Miss.-based group had been outsourcing roasting operations to sell beans to support its stated mission, which is “the biblical ethic of decency in American society with primary emphasis on television and other media,” although the group’s efforts extend to broader contentious social issues including same-sex marriage and abortion.

Roastery manager Greg Sanders recently told djournal.com that the in-house roasting operation will save between 25 to 40 percent on production costs. The group is selling roasted beans for $12 per pound, and it says it is buying beans only from faith-based importers, in order to further support its mission-based outreach in coffee-producing communities.