Florida Trend | Florida's Business Authority

Thursday's Daily Pulse

Florida orange estimate continues to shrink

As anticipated by many within the Florida citrus industry, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's June 11 crop estimate shows a continually shrinking orange crop due mostly to the effects of citrus greening. The 2013-14 Florida citrus season likely finished with the lowest orange crop in 29 years, and none too soon for many a dispirited grower. More at the Grower, the Lakeland Ledger, and the Naples Daily News.

See also:
» Florida Department of Citrus reorganizes


Brazilians make their mark on Florida and beyond

As all eyes turn to Brazil for the World Cup, Brazilians in the U.S. are also gaining notice. According to the U.S. Census, more than 325,000 people of Brazilian ancestry now call the United States home, but experts put the numbers higher. In good times and bad, Brazilians have flocked to Florida over the last decade. [Source: AP]


The Most And Least Reliable Countries To Do Business In

Are you looking for new international suppliers for your company? Or thinking about where to open an overseas office? When you evaluate your international customers, do you care about the stability of their business environment? Find out what you need to know before taking that next step. [Source: Forbes]


Rental boom is afoot ... but with complications

Demand for new multifamily residences has come from a rising number of household formations, young people choosing to rent rather than buy, baby boomer downsizing and population growth in states including Florida. [Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune]


Minimum wage increase could help 22% of Florida workers

Increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, as has been proposed by President Barack Obama, would help 22.4 percent of Florida workers, according to a study by Oxfam America. [Source: South Florida Business Journal]


ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Sanborn Studios claims blacklisting by Sarasota
Sanborn Studios is firing back against Sarasota County with its own allegations in a dispute over the more than half-million dollars the business got to create jobs.

› FSU hires new firm as it restarts presidential search
Florida State University hired a new search consultant Wednesday with hopes of moving past the acrimony and mistrust that has plagued its hunt for a new president.

› Palm Beach County vitamin manufacturer secures $20M investment
The Riviera Beach-based company manufactures nutritional products and pharmaceuticals, including Omega 3 vitamins under the Ocean Blue brand, and generic dental health pills and tablets, and prenatal vitamins.

› MLB academy site hunt in extra innings
Five years after the deal to publicly finance construction of Marlins Park in Little Havana and with the Marlins now in their third season at their new stadium, Major League Baseball still hasn’t settled on a site for a local youth baseball academy.


Go to page 2 for more stories ...

› Public asked to report rare bird sightings
Got owls? The state wildlife commission is asking for any reports of sightings of burrowing owls, southeastern American kestrels and painted buntings. The three birds are all rare, declining species found in South Florida, as well as other parts of the state.
» See also: FWC: Help us find these rare upland birds

› Miami food trucks safer than restaurants, study says
On your next lunch outing in Miami, you may want to consider this: Food trucks performed better than brick-and-mortar restaurants when it came to food code violations.

› Intermedix buys medical billings business
Intermedix Corp., a fast-growing Fort Lauderdale company that provides technology services and software for health care and safety industries, has made another acquisition. Intermedix said it bought the medical billings operations of California's T-System to expand in the billings business.

› Florida agencies tracking down former foster youth about health coverage
Just as the 2010 health-care law extends coverage to young adults on their parents’ insurance policies until age 26, it also extends Medicaid coverage to those who were in foster care on their 18th birthdays, including about 200 former foster youth in Duval and Nassau counties.