Please read this offer to better understand how it works to order in an animal in whole or part. Lamb Fest 2010 is an opportunity for you to buy USDA lamb cuts directly from the farmer in individual packages to see what you like.
Organically Raised Lamb Available Now
We are pleased to be able to offer you organically raised lamb from Josh Farmer of the Snoqualmie Valley. He has been farming for near 30 years and grazes his beef, lambs and goats in both Duvall and Bothell.
A fellow farmer told us, “Josh raises beyond the organic standard.” This means that there are no fertilizers or pesticides used on any of the grasses upon which his animals graze. Although his animals primarily eat grass and are moved between the Duvall and Bothell farms as needed for maximum nutrition, they also receive a daily meal of special grains. Josh feeds his animal grains that have been recycled from the brewery, which means all harmful sugars have been removed. It’s these sugars that weaken an animal’s immune system. This grain is slightly damp, smells fresh and is much lighter than soaked wheat, barley or spelt.
These animals are fed no hormones and are never injected with harmful drugs. All medicinals are natural and herbal as required by organic certification. I repeat: These lambs are not certified organic but are raised to a standard beyond organic certification. Remember, organic certification is costly and a lot of paperwork for any farmer or rancher.
BREED and AGE: Josh raises chevettes or cheviots. These lambs are born and raised on his farm alone, not imported. All lambs harvested are under 6 months of age. Here is a link to better understand the various breeds of lamb:
On the left hand side of the page, click on Cherviot and the picture and description will come up quickly.
Lambs are not grown sheep. The Scots used a lot of “mutton” and it was the 2-year-old sheep that were used in stew pots. Mutton is very fatty and stringy. Baby lamb is more mild flavored, much more lean, more tender than beef, yet full-bodied in flavor when it is harvested young. It’s especially delicious with garlic.
TERMS OF SALE:
You purchase a lamb from Josh on two terms (see below). When we have a minimum of 4 orders, he takes the lambs to Lynden to a certified USDA processing plant. Here the inspectors supervise the process of dressing out each. Then licensed butchers cut and wrap the lamb into individual packages. Each package labels the cut, the weight and has a USDA stamp on the package.
Lambs, live weight, are about 120 pounds
You pay Josh Farmer a $100 non –refundable fee that is applied to the total cost of your ordered lamb.
OPTION 1:.
You can pay Josh $1.48 per pound for this LIVE weight of approximately 120# + $90 for slaughter & package fee, which would be $177.60 + $90 for a grand total of $267.40. There will be some tax charged by the USDA processor. This would be your USDA finished cut, wrapped lamb frozen, ready to go into your freezer. Each package bears the USDA stamp and weight. The finished weight, after slaughter and trim, would be about 60 pounds of beyond organically raised lamb
.
OPTION 2:
The other alternative payment is to pay Josh $3.75 per pound FINISHED WEIGHT. This finished weight is approximately 60 pounds x $3.75 which is $225 plus tax and $90 slaughter & packaging fee for the whole lamb. This is done for customers order ½ lamb. For this price, you receive your cut, wrapped USDA packaged cuts with the weight of each on the package label.
DELIVERY:
When at least 4 lambs are ordered at one time, Josh will deliver the frozen meat to Duvall for distribution to those who ordered. Since the meat is frozen, it will be important for coordinate pickup so you can transport quickly to your home freezer.
ORDER AND PAYMENT PROCEDURES:
(1) You order your lamb thru oxygen14@comcast.net
(2) You provide me with your name, accurate email address, phone number to reach you quickly, and the number of lambs you want to order in.
You attach the lamb “cuts” list along with your order or say, “traditional cuts only please.
(3) I will CONFIRM your order by email. Send your check for $100 deposit to me IMMEDIATELY.
(4) I will notify you when your lambs have been delivered to Lynden for processing, and when they are estimated to be ready for pickup. As soon as your particular lamb is hung and cut, the USDA facility notifies Josh with a “ticket” of the hanging weight or the “live weight.”
(5) Since Josh must pay all the processing fees for your lamb out right before he can pick them up, I will email you and ask you to send him your check immediately. You will have approximately 10-14 days turnaround time to get him your payment.
(5) Pickup will be in Duvall unless other arrangements are made. For example, members of the Bulk Buy Group who live closer to Marysville, Stanwood, Sedro-Woolley and Whidby Island might prefer to pick up in Lynden directly.
COOKING WITH LAMB:
We are fortunate to have cooks in our group who are experienced in preparing delicious lamb dishes. Terrie, Cheryl, Dick, Charity all enjoy lamb as do their children. Lamb was so unaffordable in Canada when Fred and I were raising our children, we didn’t have it often.
Terrie suggests:
· 2 parts ground beef and 1 part ground lamb makes delicious meatballs.
· Sautee loin lamb chops in a bit of olive oil and savor their taste when surrounded with veggie and brown rice
Susan suggests:
- Ground lamb seasoned with middle eastern seasoning, grilled into burgers and stuffed in pita bred with fresh veggie chopped from your garden. A simple chipotle mayonnaise to dress your burgers.
- Lamb stew in a crock-pot with local root vegetables of parsnips, leeks, potatoes, and roasted turnips. The lamb imparts a distinct flavor to the vegetables.
So, this is yet another opportunity to work closely with a clean Washington farmer and expand your children’s palate at the same time. Imagine your healthy lamb cut surrounded by walls of vegetables and nourishing grains piled around it.—Yum!
Lamb Fest 2010:
Since many of you are not familiar with lamb, you will have the opportunity to purchase organically raised cuts of USDA inspected and wrapped lamb cuts in mid-September. I will go meet the my co-op on a Saturday morning (Either Sept 18 or 24) at Josh’s Duvall farm and I may purchase particular cuts for $5.00 a pound. Each package has the weight on it so you will multiply it by $5 per pound and pay Josh directly. Only farmers/ranchers who use USDA facilities are permitted to resell meat in this fashion.
If you want to participate in Lamb Fest 2010, please email oxygen14@comcast.net to reserve your place at this event.
I’m thinking that once you taste this high quality delicious lamb, you will want to consider purchasing a lamb from Josh for your family’s longer term pantry.
Standard Possible Cuts of Lamb:
I have attached a list of possible cuts for lamb from a gourmet butcher who advertises on the internet. It’s a way for you to see all the possibilities for serving lamb from the entire animal, wasting little. This does not mean that YOU would be able to order all these cuts from the USDA facility in Lynden, but it gets you thinking about options and cuts that might be most suitable to your family.
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