Crop-watchers are taking stock of the damage from the winter storm that sent temperatures plummeting as far south as Texas. And the verdict isn't good for crops like grapefruits, onions and cabbage.

U.S. Department of Agriculture data late last week extended the trend of outlooks forecasting tightening grain supplies and robust export demand, and the supply implications of those factors sent corn, soybean and wheat futures higher in overnight trading preceding Monday's session.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Chief Economist Seth Meyer said Thursday agency estimates show U.S. farm exports will be a record of $157 billion this year, with $31.5 billion of that going to China, also a record.

Though it's largely because of major gains in corn, soybean and wheat prices and resulting demand from the farm gate, the increase in fertilizer prices — specifically phosphate (P) and potash (K) — is driven by more than $5 corn and $13 soybeans.

In the year since the global COVID-19 pandemic began, it's disrupted supply chains around the world and caused massive changes in many sectors of the economy.

Glufosinate tolerance is a growing trait in a lot of soybean and cotton varieties in the last two decades, with tolerant acres ballooning — largely in the southeast and mid-South — to more than 15 million acres.

As temperatures begin to slowly rebound and farmers and ranchers start to recover from the Arctic blast that dropped temperatures to around zero as far south as Texas, a system delivering light snow and rain to the eastern seaboard looks to be the only major moisture-bearing weather pattern in the U.S. for the next couple of days.

Improving revenue prospects for farms around the country have many looking at ways to make incremental improvements to their operations.

The crop and livestock markets took note and the supply chains saw disruptions from the polar blast that's descended upon the U.S. this week. Grain shipments have been delayed because of issues the freezing temperatures have caused for rail transportation.

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) provided loans to farmers who suffered adverse economic effects from the COVID-19 pandemic. Initial payments to farmers were based on net income, but the program is changing for 2021 in a few key ways.