Growing up, my parents bought a side of beef every fall and stocked the deep freezer with white packets, pulling them out one by one throughout the year. Some were roasts, some pounds of ground round, with a few T-bones in there for special occasions. It wasn’t something they did out of a deep respect for the land, desire for omega-3 fatty acids, or fear of CAFO antibiotics — beef was just cheaper that way. But all those modern concerns are reason enough to buy grass-fed beef in bulk from a local farmer. Today, on the Cascade Harvest Coalition’s listserv, a newswire for the sustainable-food community, this notice arrived:Beef for sale with a Nov. 6 process date. Carcass weight is about 800#. These are sold as mixed quarters, halves, or the whole carcass. Grass-fed and finished. Organic poultry fertilizer [for the grass] and no pesticides or herbicides for many years. Price is $3.50/lb hanging weight and includes cut and wrap, so 1/4 around $700. Buyers able to coordinate with other buyers of 1/4’s for size of cuts, and other preferences.If you’re interested in taking the station wagon to Woodinville to truck back a couple hundred pounds of beef, contact farmer Bruce Singbeil at singbbird@verizon.net. Or sign up for the coalition’s listserv to look for future offers. I’ll talk to Bruce later today to get details.