EH Grain - grain storage and bin rent in Benton, Kentucky
July 27, 2026
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Thank you for your business and for the trust you’ve placed in us over the years. We’ve valued every relationship this work has brought us, and we don’t take that for granted.
After careful thought about the current market and our family’s needs, we’ve decided not to offer new grain contracts or purchase spot-sold grain for the upcoming fall harvest. If you already have a contract with us, it remains valid and will be honored in full at our Brewers location.
This wasn’t a decision we made lightly, and it isn’t a step back — it’s a step toward what matters most. Anna and Wilbern Howell bought this farm eighty years ago, and we intend to keep it in the family for at least eighty more. After twenty-five years in the granary business, we’ve decided to change our model so we can stay profitable and keep farming for the long run. Those twenty-five years gave us wonderful friendships, hard-won lessons, and experience we wouldn’t trade. But the last two years, because of a changing agricultural market, have been difficult, and widening our basis enough to fix that would mean asking more of you than we’re willing to ask. The market has changed, the economy has changed, and our family’s priorities have changed with them.
Farming is where our heart is — livestock and row crop — and that’s where we’re putting our focus. As they say in Gone with the Wind, “Land is the only thing worth fighting for.” We’d add that our faith and our family’s health matter just as much, but you understand the sentiment. We’re proud of the smaller, hardy crew we have left, and we’re committed to making this an even better place for them to work. Family business — it carries a lot of heart, doesn’t it?
We’d still like to serve you through bin rent and storage. You’d deliver to our Brewers location, and when the time comes, we’d load it onto your trucks so you’re free to market it wherever you choose. A storage agreement, including a per-bushel fee, is still being finalized — we’ll share those figures as soon as they’re set. If you’d like to reserve space now, please reach out. We may also have trucking services available for hire; we’re still working out the details.
We’re also planning to sell our Stella location. If you have any interest in purchasing it, please let us know. Storing the crops we grow ourselves and capturing the carry in the market has served us well over the years, but we simply don’t need that much room now that we’re no longer buying grain from farmers. We’re also reconsidering our lease on the Murray location and haven’t yet decided whether we’ll continue it.
We’re not ruling out buying grain again down the road — for now, we’re simply taking a breather. We appreciate your understanding and thank you for your continued support. We wish you a safe and successful harvest season and hope to work together again soon.
This next season also brings changes at home. Barron is eleven and will be homeschooled half-days this year, with lessons built largely around his growing cattle herd — his homeschooling needs and interests helped shape some of these changes on the farm as well. Hadley is a senior, and we intend to soak up all the time we can with her before graduation. As a family, we’re making our mental and physical health a priority. Mom and Dad have slowed their pace a little, but they’re still on the farm every day — it’s where they started, and it’s where they want to spend their time now. Ron serves on the Marshall County Soil Conservation Board, the Jonathan Water District Board, the NCCA School Board, and the local volunteer fire department board. I am president of the Parent Teacher Association and an active volunteer at New Covenant Christian Academy, and I also serve on the Marshall County Hospital Board.
Farming, livestock, row crop, and serving our community — that’s what matters to us. Mom and Dad’s slower pace, our family’s health, and our time together matter too. Wrangling grain markets has proven difficult in recent years, and we suspect you’ve felt some of those same challenges on your own farm. So, we’re choosing to focus on what is worthwhile to us.
Accountability and transparency matter to us throughout this change. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
Sincerely,
Heather Davis on behalf of Eric Howell Grain
Eric and Brenda Howell
My husband Ron Davis and our children Hadley and Barron
We hope you’ll understand our decision to put first things first. If we keep making the next right decision, the Lord will guide our steps.
Our Journey Through Generations
My dad Eric Howell grew up on this land we now call “The Farm.” The Farm is located on Wilkins Road in the Brewers community of Marshall County Kentucky. This piece of land was a major purchase for my grandparents, Wilburn and Anna Howell, who lived through The Great Depression. Papaw was born in a shack just down the road. He told stories of growing up in that shack. While he slept, the snow would come through the cracks of the roof and cover his blanket. The door to that shack is now in Dad’s office, reminding us of our humble beginnings.
Mamaw was a school teacher. She was an intelligent woman who encouraged Papaw and Dad’s work ethic and ambition. When Dad was a boy, this farm was home to dairy cows that required milking twice a day. On this farm they also grew tobacco, corn, soybeans, wheat, and hogs. We eliminated tobacco and dairy cows, but thanks to my son’s love of cows, our beef cattle herd is growing. (We got him 2 Charolais calves for his second birthday.) The Farm has evolved and changed over the years; but corn, soybeans, wheat, and hogs are still raised on this farm. When Papaw had 1,000 bushels of corn in storage for the winter, it seemed like a huge amount. Now, our grain storage capacity is 2.5 million bushels.