New Penn Farm
Docility / Fertility / Feed Efficiency
Carl Hinkle
From Humble Beginnings to Lasting Impact
Carl Hinkle: A Legacy of Hard Work and Community
Early Life and Inspirations
Carl Hinkle and his wife, Janie Sprouse Hinkle, established New Penn Farm in 1988. Both Carl and Janie were natives of Truxton, NY, a small town where their roots ran deep. Carl was raised in a family that lived modestly, with a tradition of raising a few animals each year to meet their own needs. His connection to farming was further strengthened by his grandfather, who owned a dairy farm on Cheningo Road. This upbringing instilled in Carl a profound love and respect for the country and farming life.
Carl's passion for agriculture led him to pursue higher education at Morrisville University. Known for his storytelling, Carl often regaled listeners with tales from his youth—stories that painted vivid pictures of the people who supported him through school, his farming adventures, and humorous anecdotes about his aversion to horseback riding. He also shared exciting accounts of his hunting and fishing excursions with friends, illustrating a life full of cherished memories and lessons learned.
Building a Legacy Through Hard Work
Despite not coming from a wealthy background, Carl's determination and strong work ethic propelled him forward. He took a significant risk when he started his business, Atlantic Inland, investing everything he had into its success. His commitment and business savvy paid off, as the venture flourished under his leadership. Carl's success was not just measured by financial gain, but also by the respect and admiration he garnered from his community.
Giving Back to the Community
In his later years, Carl's focus shifted towards giving back to the community that had supported him throughout his life. He was a firm believer in the importance of supporting the next generation, and his generosity was evident in the substantial contribution he left to the National 4-H Council. This act of philanthropy ensured that young people would continue to benefit from opportunities in agriculture and leadership development, just as he had.
Carl's life is a testament to the power of hard work, perseverance, and community spirit. Through his stories, his business success, and his charitable acts, Carl left a lasting impact on those around him, ensuring that his legacy would endure for generations to come.
Carl Hinkle Obituary
Carl E. Hinkle August 3, 2021 Carl E. Hinkle, 86, of Truxton, passed away Tuesday, August 3, 2021, at St. Joseph's Hospital. He was born March 15,1935 in Truxton, the son of Fred and Leola Denison Hinkle. He was a U.S. Army Veteran. Carl, with the support of his wife, Janie, built Atlantic Inland from the ground up. His love for working there was seen through the way he treated his inspectors and employees as friends and partners. He would be found each day working at his business until his passing at 86 years old. Carl also founded New Penn Farm, a leader in creating high genetic Black Angus cattle in N.Y.S. He was a member of the American Angus Assoc., N.Y. Beef Producers, and a National Electrical Inspectors Assoc. He was instrumental in securing the Truxton Charter School and Community Center. He also enjoyed hunting, trapping, and fishing. Carl believed in farming sustainability through youth involvement and education. Surviving nieces and nephews: Sandra Krause, Judy Haskins, William Prosser, John Prosser; the loving Sprouse Family; longtime friend, Roger Mules. He was predeceased by his wife, Janie. The funeral service will be held Friday, August 13, 2021, at the Truxton United Methodist Church at 11:00 A.M. Burial will follow in the Truxton Cemetery. There are no calling hours. Following the burial a Celebration of his life will follow at New Penn Farm. Contributions may be made to the Truxton Cemetery c/o Carol Potter,5575 Cheningo Rd.,Truxton, N.Y. 13158. Smith Funeral Home DeRuyter has arrangements.
TRUXTON CATTLE FARMER SHOWS OFF HIS HERD
Cortland Standard September 13, 2011
Bob Ellis/staff photographer
Carl Hinkle, owner of New Penn Farm on Cheningo Road in Truxton,
watches his herd of Angus cattle enter the barn on Monday.
By STEVE HUGHES
Staff Reporter
shughes@cortlandstandardnews.net
TRUXTON — After a lifetime of raising and selling Angus beef cattle, local beef producer Carl Hinkle was forced to sell all but two of his cattle from New Penn Farm in 2007 to deal with health problems.
Hinkle, 75, regained his health and got back into the business in 2009. He built a new facility on his old farm in Truxton and now has 68 Angus beef cattle roaming his 438-acre farm.
The pride and joy of the new barn is a herding system that guides individual cattle through a series of chutes and gates into a small holding pen. Once inside the pen, the animal can be examined or vaccinated by Hinkle or a veterinarian, or artificially inseminated. The machinery that guides the cattle into the pen cuts down on the rough physical labor of pushing and dragging a half-ton cow into place. “It just makes things easier, especially when they start to kick,” Hinkle said. “It’s also safer for me and for them.” On Monday, New Penn Farm hosted the second stop of a week-long bus tour by Alabama beef producers, showing off Hinkle’s herd and giving a tour of the barn.
The tour throughout the Finger Lakes region gives the Alabama producers a chance to compare notes and see how beef farming is done in New York, said Rich Brown, the former president of the New York State Beef Producers Association.
“They get to look at the facility and to see how beef cattle are treated humanely and safely here in New York,” he said.
Joe Potter, of Russellville, Ala., was one of the 44 members of the tour. Potter sold his herd in 2007 and became the Franklin County agent of the Alabama Cooperative Extension before retiring last year.
The tour has been an eye-opening experience for him, he said. “Parts of the country where I come from have been in a terrible drought, and to come up here and see all this green farmland, it’s real beautiful,” he said. The tour group members were part of the Alabama Farm Federation. Their herds range from a few dozen beef cattle to over 400, said the director of the Alabama Beef Farmers Division, Nate Jaeger. The differences between Alabama beef cattle and the ones raised in New York are small, said Jaeger. The real contrast is in the numbers of dairy cattle and beef cattle. “In Alabama, about 85 percent of the cattle raised are beef cattle, while in New York, about 85 percent are dairy cattle,” said Jaeger. Despite his past health problems, Hinkle plans to expand the New Penn Farm herd if he can. His goal is to eventually have 80 to 85 beef cattle.
“That’s an ideal number,” he said. “From a business standpoint, if I had any more I’d have to hire on help and that’d be more expenses.”
Cortland Standard May 23, 2013Photo by Bob Ellis/staff photographer
New Penn Farm owner Carl Hinkle speaks to a group
of visitors Wednesday about his Black Angus farm on
Cheningo Road in Truxton.
By AMY E. BARONE
Staff Reporterabarone@cortlandstandardnews.net
TRUXTON — Carl Hinkle opened up his Black Angus farm to a small group of people on Wednesday in an effort to highlight selective breeding of the cattle and show the pasture on which they are raised until sold or sent to a feedlot.The New York State Beef Industry Council was also present in an effort to promote beef products to tour members, as well.Hinkle began what he calls a Black Angus cow-calf operation back in 1988 with only eight cows. Since then, his farm has grown to 72 cattle, including heifers, cows, steer, bulls and calves.According to Hinkle, of his total herd he will send about 60 to 65 percent to the feedlot for slaughter, about 25 to 26 percent kept for breeding, and about 8 to 9 percent culled, or sent for auction.Hinkle offered a tour Wednesday of his selective breeding practices that comprises about a quarter of his operation to about 15 people, including a few educators in culinary arts at BOCES in Oswego county, local farmers and other cattle breeders.Hinkle described that along with other cow-calf operations, he artificially inseminates heifers with elite bull semen to improve Angus genetics.Types of animals raised at his operation include calf, offspring of a cow; heifer, a female species that has not had a calf; cow, female species who has given birth; steer, a castrated male species and bull, a male species without castration.Hinkle registers his cattle with the American Angus Association, which prides itself in modifying Black Angus genetics by selective breeding.In 2012 there were 315,007 head of Angus cattle registered, According to the American Angus Association website. States with the most registered Angus cattle include Montana, Nebraska, and South Dakota. Jean O’Toole, part of the council, said the farm tours in the state are funded by South Dakota, as it is a Black Angus cattle heavy state.Tour members also got a chance to view an ultrasound demonstration by Heather Birdsall, senior educator at Cornell Cooperative Extension, to look at the rib-eye, back fat and inner muscular tissue while the animal is alive rather than after it has been slaughtered.The ultrasound is one way to determine the size of various animal cuts for breeding or genetic evaluation.Equity Angus farmer Rich Brown of Port Byron said with the help of the American Angus Association, breeders can measure Angus value by looking at species ancestry, use of ultrasound, and analysis of its DNA.Mike Baker, beef cattle extension specialist at Cornell, discussed the use of vaccinations of cattle on his research farm as a way to prevent diseases and keep animals healthy, as deer are a large carrier of diseases and have a strong presence in the state.Hinkle described visual characteristics of a quality cattle that could prove to have good genetics for the breed.“We look at the showmanship quality, frame size, leg formation and temperament,” Hinkle said.If steer do not show good breeding quality or genetics, they are castrated, raised to be “feeders,” and sent to a feedlot where they will eventually be slaughtered, Hinkle said.On Hinkle’s farm, nearly two-thirds of cattle meet this criteria.The council was on site to promote the sale of beef by providing taste-testing of a few varieties of beef to tour members.Black Angus farmer Fred Griffen, who was not present at the tour and is not a member of the council, owns High Lonesome Farm in Cincinnatus, comprised of 26 cattle.He raises Black Angus on a certified organic farm, which is animal welfare approved and licensed by the American grass-fed association.“Many of us small farmers are trying to re-establish the original Aberdeen breed from Scotland through natural breeding practices,” he said.Instead of investing in expensive technology and DNA analysis, Griffen relies on select physical observations of the breed to determine a lot about genetics.Griffen operates a farm-to-fork farm where calves spend their entire lives on one farm before being slaughtered in an certified facility.
Farm Tour Promotes Beef