New spirit of innovation is transforming space industry

Billionaires like Elon Musk and Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos, startups with venture capital backing and even Silicon Valley giants like Google are applying their technology and vision to space ventures, pushing new approaches in an industry that was seen as moving too slowly. [Source: Florida Today]

Florida agents putting new law to work to attract millennials to insurance careers

Florida insurance agents are trying to bolster the industry’s track record in attracting college graduates by employing a new state law that aligns college courses with the state’s licensing requirements. [Source: Insurance Journal]

Cannabis catalyst: Medical marijuana could boost business in Florida

There are 15,000 businesses nationwide that provide services and technology to marijuana growers and dispensaries. They see Florida as an opportunity. The state’s budding marijuana market could be one of the largest in the country within a matter of years if 60 percent of voters approve Amendment 2. More from the Times/Herald and WTSP.

Florida's algae-fighting plan criticized by feds over bird

Florida's decision to fight a massive algae bloom by temporarily holding more water north of Lake Okeechobee is drawing criticism from federal wildlife officials who say the rising water is threatening 10 nests of an endangered bird. [Source: AP]

See also:
» 'A Government-Sponsored Disaster': Florida Asks For Federal Help With Toxic Algae
» Florida's algae problem tied to decades of pollution

Florida wine industry continues to mature

It’s an industry with a nearly billion-dollar impact in Florida. And yet, many people don’t even know it exists. The Florida wine business has been slowly chugging along—aging and maturing, just like a fine wine—and only now is starting to see the fruits of its harvest. [Source: Forward Florida]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Iconic Broward hotels pumping millions into property upgrades [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
A handful of iconic and popular Broward County hotels are undergoing multimillion-dollar upgrades this summer to keep their offerings fresh, as newer properties get set to open in the destination in a few years.

› Lakewood Ranch big target for medical businesses [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
While the growth in medical business in the community would seem like a concerted strategy, local business leaders say it's more a result of health businesses seeing Lakewood Ranch as a growing market of health care consumers.

› Gov. Scott to pitch Florida at British air show [WJXT]
Gov. Rick Scott is heading back to England to attend an air show with Florida's streamlined business-recruitment agency. Scott is topping an Enterprise Florida contingent of at least 44 people to the biennial Farnborough International Airshow.

› PortMiami joins big-ship era [Miami Herald]
PortMiami officially joined the Neopanamax era on Saturday, July 9, 2016, when the MOL Majesty became the first ship to arrive at the port after transiting the newly expanded Panama Canal.

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› Streamsong Black will be par-73, 'big ballpark' [Lakeland Ledger]
Streamsong Resort’s new Black Course will be a par-73 with five par-5 holes. “It’s a big ballpark, very expansive,’’ said Rich Mack, executive vice president and chief financial officer for the The Mosaic Company.

› Fort Lauderdale organic detergent company brings product to Walmart, Kmart [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
Buoyed by the growing popularity of organic products, a Fort Lauderdale-based line of biodegradable cleaning products hit big-box shelves across the nation this past spring.

› Universal Orlando becoming bigger player in the convention hotel market [Orlando Sentinel]
Rapidly expanding Universal Orlando is becoming a bigger player in the convention and meeting market, with its fifth hotel opening on Thursday that will soon aim to attract people just as interested in networking as riding roller coasters.

› Network Capital Funding expands home mortgage market from Miami [Miami Herald]
Network Capital Funding Corp. is a privately owned, non-bank financial institution that specializes in making mortgage loans directly to customers for purchasing new or used homes, refinancing existing mortgages, consolidating debts and home improvement.