Today’s quick hits, Sept. 14, 2021

Trevino for ag negotiator: President Biden nominated Elaine Trevino, president of the Almond Alliance of California, to serve as chief agricultural negotiator in the office of the U.S. trade representative. (White House)

Biden on fires: The ever-longer wildfire season is proof the nation cannot ignore climate change, said President Biden during a tour of the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. (Associated Press)

Ida swamps exports: The volume of corn certified for export last week was the smallest in more than eight years and the soybean volume was the smallest in seven years because of damage to Gulf Coast elevators from Hurricane Ida. (Reuters)

Fire at JBS plant: The meat processor told employees not to come to work on Monday at its plant in Grand Island, Nebraska, where a fire began Sunday evening in the facility’s rendering building. (Associated Press)

Diet and Covid-19: A diet based on “healthy plant-based foods” may reduce the risk of contracting Covid-19 or becoming seriously ill from the virus, according to a recent study. “This association may be particularly evident among individuals living in areas with higher socioeconomic deprivation,” it said. (Harvard Gazette)