August 12, 2026 Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting new business activity in Florida

Florida spent this summer redrawing the lines around farmland. A new state law took effect on July 1 that lets the owner of a qualifying agricultural parcel ask the local government to certify it as an agricultural enclave and then bring development plans forward. In the same weeks the state paid to hold 1,675 acres of Levy and Putnam County timberland in production for good, Miami-Dade moved to make room for vertical farms inside the urban area, and Orange County took up an update on putting managed farming back on its conservation land. New farm, ranch, nursery, timber, and fishing operations keep registering with the state to work the land and water that stay in production.

New agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting businesses are forming fastest in Southeast Florida. Every newly registered farm, ranch, grove, nursery, timber tract, or fishing operation draws on a predictable set of local businesses. A new operation needs farm and crop insurance, a lender that understands land, an accountant who knows agricultural exemptions, equipment dealers and repair shops, irrigation and well contractors, fencing and land clearing crews, feed and seed suppliers, veterinary and livestock hauling services, cold storage and packing, and freight. Fishing and aquaculture operations add boat and gear service, ice and dockside handling, and dealer licensing. That is why new formations cluster where the land, the water, and the processing capacity already are.

The counts below show where new agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting businesses are registering, by region, over the last 30, 90, and 365 days. Under them is the recent news owners are watching, from a new land use law to timber easements, a livestock import rule, two harvest seasons, and a pest that turned up in pastures this summer, with the specific businesses each one creates work for. The licensing portals and the local associations live at the bottom, in Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting Resources.

New agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting businesses by region, over the last 30, 90, and 365 days. Regions are ranked by the last year.

Otros 1,830 negocios nuevos del último año no indicaron un condado, así se cuentan en el total de Florida pero no se ubican en una región.

Developments owners in this sector are watching right now, with the real date of each and the specific businesses it creates work for. This edition runs from a new state law on agricultural enclaves and a livestock import rule to timber easements in Levy and Putnam Counties, a commercial fishing dock at Port Canaveral, oyster and lobster seasons on two coasts, and a new pasture pest in the Tampa Bay area.

• Statewide· vigente desde 2026-07-01

  Florida's new agricultural enclave law takes effect

  CS/CS/CS/SB 686, titled Agricultural Enclaves, took effect on July 1, 2026. The Governor approved it on April 20, 2026, and it is Chapter 2026-34. The law lets the owner of a qualifying agricultural parcel apply to the local government for certification of that parcel as an agricultural enclave. The local government has to hold a public hearing within a set time to approve or deny the certification. The law then authorizes the owner to submit development plans, and allows the parcel to be developed for commercial, industrial, or single family residential use in certain circumstances.

  3 oportunidades en esta actualización

  • Certification itself is a professional job. A petition needs the parcel boundaries surveyed, the agricultural history documented, and the case put in front of a board at a public hearing inside a fixed window. Owners who have never been through a land use hearing hire that work out.
  • A certified parcel that moves to a development plan needs engineering before it needs builders. Access, drainage, utilities, and environmental review all come first, and every one of them is a study with a signature on it.
  • Owners who decide not to develop still get a valuation question they did not have before. Appraisers, agricultural lenders, and estate and tax advisers get called either way.

  A new path from farmland to a development plan changes what a rural parcel is worth and what its owner does next. The work starts long before a shovel moves, with the studies, surveys, and hearings the certification takes.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • land use attorneys
  • land planners
  • land surveyors
  • civil engineers
  • land appraisers
  • environmental consultants
  • agricultural lenders

  A single written process for these parcels gives landowners and their neighbors the same set of rules to work from.

  Fuente: The Florida Senate

• Statewide· 2026-07-01

  Livestock from two states now need extra paperwork to enter Florida

  On July 1, 2026 the state's Division of Animal Industry said Colorado had joined New Mexico as a state affected by vesicular stomatitis, and that the two were the only affected states at that time. All hoofed animals coming into Florida from an affected state, including horses, ruminants, swine, and exotic and wild hoofed animals, have to meet the extra import rules in Florida Administrative Code 5C-3.002(5). Animals from premises that are not affected, and that are not within 10 miles of an affected premises, need an Official Certificate of Veterinary Inspection dated within five days of entry and signed by an accredited veterinarian. They also need a prior permission number written on that certificate. Livestock coming from an approved market in an affected state straight to an approved Florida slaughter facility are exempt from the certificate rule, but they still need the permission number.

  A rule that turns on a signed certificate and a permission number puts a veterinarian and a document in the middle of every load. Producers who move animals often lean on the people who can handle both quickly.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • large animal veterinarians
  • livestock haulers
  • livestock markets
  • feed and animal health suppliers
  • brand and health inspectors

  Checking animals at the state line keeps a painful, contagious disease away from Florida herds.

  Fuente: Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Animal Industry

• Statewide· anunciado 2026-07-17

  Federal orange juice standard lowers the bar Florida fruit has to clear

  On July 17, 2026 the Florida Department of Citrus welcomed an updated federal Standard of Identity for pasteurized orange juice from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Food and Drug Administration. The minimum Brix level, the measure of soluble solids in the juice, drops from 10.5 to 10. The department said the change lets more Florida grown oranges qualify for pasteurized juice production and cuts the industry's need for imported juice with a higher Brix. Executive Director Shannon Shepp said the decision will strengthen the future of Florida citrus, the growers, and their families.

  A lower floor means fruit that used to miss the standard now has somewhere to go, so more of a grove's crop is worth picking. That reaches back down the line to everyone who moves, stores, and processes it.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • citrus growers
  • packing houses
  • juice processors
  • fruit haulers
  • grove caretakers
  • citrus nurseries

  Keeping more Florida fruit in Florida juice supports the groves still working their way back from disease and storms.

  Fuente: Florida Department of Citrus

• Statewide· reportado 2026-07-13

  Florida's nursery and landscape association counts the industry at $41.9 billion

  On July 13, 2026 the Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association reported on its 74th Annual Convention and the officers installed for 2026 and 2027. The association put Florida's environmental horticulture industry at a $41.9 billion economic impact supporting more than 279,000 jobs. Jennifer Parrish of Farm Credit of Central Florida was installed as President, Jeff DeMott of Redland Nursery as President Elect, and Erin Jenkins Banas of Jenkins Landscape Co. as Secretary and Treasurer.

  Growing plants is only the first step in that number. Most of it is the work of getting plants installed and kept alive on somebody else's property.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • plant nurseries
  • landscape contractors
  • sod growers
  • irrigation contractors
  • tree services
  • landscape supply wholesalers

  A green industry this size is one of Florida's largest employers of skilled outdoor labor.

  Fuente: Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association

• Southeast Florida (Gold Coast, Treasure Coast & Keys)· 2026-07-14

  Miami-Dade moves to make room for vertical farming inside the urban area

  On July 14, 2026 the Miami-Dade County Recreation, Tourism, and Resiliency Committee forwarded resolution 261141 to the full board with a favorable recommendation. It directs the County Mayor or the Mayor's designee to consider the recommendations in the county's agriculture report and to file an application to amend the Comprehensive Development Master Plan. The amendment would provide for or encourage greater allowances inside the urbanized area for high intensity, closed agricultural production systems such as vertical farming, as long as those uses are compatible with the residential or commercial development around them. The resolution was introduced on June 23, 2026.

  3 oportunidades en esta actualización

  • The building itself is the first job. A closed production system is a shell, a slab, and a roof structure carrying racks and lighting, and it is permitted like a light industrial building rather than like a barn.
  • The systems inside it are the second job, and they never really finish. Climate control, lighting, water treatment, and nutrient dosing all need installing, and then they need service contracts, spare parts, and someone on call when a pump fails at 2 a.m.
  • Getting the land use right comes before either. A change of this kind moves through applications and hearings, so owners hire planners and attorneys well ahead of any construction.

  A closed growing system is a building before it is a farm, so the work looks like construction and controls rather than tractors. A grower who wants to be inside the urban area needs people who can design one, build one, and keep it running.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • greenhouse builders
  • refrigeration and climate control contractors
  • electrical contractors
  • irrigation and water treatment installers
  • land use attorneys
  • produce distributors

  Growing food inside the urban area shortens the trip from the farm to the plate in the part of the state losing farmland fastest.

  Fuente: Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners

• Southeast Florida (Gold Coast, Treasure Coast & Keys)· anunciado 2026-07-28

  Florida's spiny lobster season opened August 6 and runs to the end of March

  On July 28, 2026 the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission set out the season calendar. The two day sport season ran July 29 and 30, and the regular season began August 6, 2026 and continues through March 31, 2027. In Monroe County and Biscayne National Park waters the limit is up to six lobsters per person per day, against up to 12 per person per day in all other Florida waters. Lobsters must have a carapace longer than 3 inches, measured in the water, and they must stay whole, so separating the tail from the body is not allowed. Harvesters need a valid Florida saltwater fishing license and a spiny lobster permit.

  A season that runs to the end of March is most of a year of work on the water for the boats that fish it. Every trip needs fuel, ice, traps, and somewhere to land the catch.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • commercial lobster fishers
  • marinas and fuel docks
  • boat and engine repair shops
  • trap and gear suppliers
  • ice houses
  • seafood dealers

  A season with limits keeps one of the Keys' oldest working industries in business without fishing it out.

  Fuente: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

• Tampa Bay (Gulf Coast)· 2026-07-21

  Hillsborough commissioners take a status report on agricultural enclave projects

  At its Land Use meeting on July 21, 2026 the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners took up file 2026-0076, a staff status report on agricultural enclave projects. The board accepted it, and the item passed. Agricultural enclave certification is the path the state opened on July 1, 2026, and the county had a report on those projects in front of its board three weeks later.

  A county tracking these parcels is a county expecting applications. Every application carries a stack of professional work before it ever reaches a hearing.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • land planners
  • land use attorneys
  • land surveyors
  • civil engineers
  • land appraisers

  Reporting these parcels in public lets residents and owners in a fast growing county see the same picture at the same time.

  Fuente: Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners

• Tampa Bay (Gulf Coast)· reportado 2026-07-15

  A new pasture pest reaches Florida and Hillsborough growers get a warning

  On July 15, 2026 UF/IFAS Extension Hillsborough County published an alert on the pasture mealybug, an invasive insect found in 15 south Florida counties in pastures, including bahiagrass and bermudagrass pastures, other forage, and sugarcane. The alert says it had not been documented in Florida urban turfgrass as of July 2026, but that it has been found in St. Augustinegrass in Texas. Infested grass yellows, then shows purple and red streaks along the length of the leaf that move quickly to brown leaves, a drought stressed look, and plant death. The alert also says there are no insecticides specifically evaluated or labeled for the pest yet, because it has been in Florida for less than 2 months, and that systemic insecticides are likely the most effective approach.

  A pest with no labeled treatment and a fast path to dead grass sends ranchers and sod growers looking for someone who can identify it and treat it correctly.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • sod growers
  • cattle ranchers
  • hay producers
  • pest control operators
  • agronomy consultants
  • lawn and landscape maintenance firms

  Catching a new pasture pest early protects the forage that Florida cattle and the sod farms around Tampa Bay both depend on.

  Fuente: UF/IFAS Extension Hillsborough County

• Central Florida (I-4 Corridor & Space Coast)· 2026-07-01

  Port Canaveral commits $5.2 million to a dock for its commercial fishing fleet

  On July 1, 2026 the Canaveral Port Authority said its new working waterfront facility for the commercial fishing community is in design, a total investment of $5.2 million by the port. The plan is 125 feet of dedicated bulkhead space with a 16 slip dock. On land it adds a large open air pavilion with fish cleaning stations, office and restroom buildings, and truck and trailer parking and storage. Rush Marine, LLC was selected for the dock, Rush Construction, Inc. of Titusville for the upland improvements, and Moffatt & Nichol, Inc. for engineering design and permitting. The port says processors on site handle about four million pounds of fresh fish a year, processed and shipped nationwide.

  3 oportunidades en esta actualización

  • The marine work comes first and it is specialist work. Bulkhead, piling, and a 16 slip dock need marine contractors, barge and crane operators, and divers, and the permitting behind them is its own trade.
  • The upland buildings are ordinary commercial construction on an unusual site. A pavilion with fish cleaning stations needs water, drainage, and wash down surfaces, and the office and restroom buildings need the full run of trades.
  • Once it opens it is a working dock with recurring needs. Ice, fuel, cold storage, waste handling, gear repair, and truck traffic all arrive with the boats, and those are contracts rather than one time jobs.

  A dedicated dock changes what a boat can get done in a day. The buildings behind it are a construction job first and a standing set of services afterwards.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • commercial fishers
  • marine contractors
  • dock and piling builders
  • seafood processors
  • refrigeration installers
  • commercial fish haulers

  A working fishing dock on the Space Coast keeps the port's original industry going beside the cruise and cargo terminals that grew up around it.

  Fuente: Canaveral Port Authority

• Central Florida (I-4 Corridor & Space Coast)· 2026-07-08

  A nursery and landscaping business asks Seminole County for room on Mellonville Avenue

  Seminole County's Development Review Committee took up project 26-80000069 on July 8, 2026, a pre-application for a Special Exception to run a nursery and landscaping company on 1.99 acres in the A-1 zoning district. The site is on the west side of Mellonville Avenue, north of Palm Way. The application is listed as item 2026-0553 on the committee's agenda for that meeting.

  A nursery on agricultural land is a small build with a long tail of supply behind it. Getting the Special Exception through is its own piece of work before a single plant arrives.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • land use consultants
  • site work contractors
  • irrigation contractors
  • greenhouse and shade structure builders
  • landscape supply wholesalers
  • plant growers

  Small growing operations close to Orlando keep landscape plants and the people who tend them near the places that buy them.

  Fuente: Seminole County Development Review Committee

• Central Florida (I-4 Corridor & Space Coast)· 2026-07-14

  Orange County looks at putting farming back on its conservation land

  The Orange County Board of County Commissioners took up item 26-0837 on July 14, 2026, an update titled Evaluation of Future Managed Agricultural Uses on Green PLACE Properties. It came from the county's Cooperative Extension Division and its Environmental Protection Division. Green PLACE is the county program that buys environmentally sensitive land, and the same agenda carried the purchase of 84.77 acres for the program at a cost of $2,715,236.33.

  Managed agriculture on public conservation land usually means grazing, hay, or timber under a lease, so the county becomes a landlord and an operator becomes a tenant with a contract.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • cattle ranchers
  • hay producers
  • fencing contractors
  • land management consultants
  • prescribed burn crews
  • forestry mowing firms

  Land that is both protected and worked keeps open space near Orlando in production instead of idle.

  Fuente: Orange County Board of County Commissioners

• Southwest Florida· 2026-07-28

  DeSoto County takes up a truck route change for livestock haulers

  File 26-1915 was on the DeSoto County Board of County Commissioners agenda for July 28, 2026. It is a resolution temporarily suspending certain truck traffic restrictions on Turner Avenue for livestock transport. The item is listed under the board's regular meeting for that date.

  Cattle move by truck, and a road closed to those trucks is a longer trip and a higher cost on every load. A route opened for livestock is worth knowing about for anyone hauling in the area.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • livestock haulers
  • cattle ranchers
  • livestock markets
  • feed and hay dealers
  • diesel repair shops

  Short, legal routes for cattle trucks hold costs down for the ranches in the middle of the state.

  Fuente: DeSoto County Board of County Commissioners

• North Central Florida (Gainesville & Ocala)· 2026-08-04

  A 545 acre Levy County timber operation is protected for good

  On August 4, 2026 the state announced permanent protection of more than 1,675 acres of working Florida agricultural land through the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program. Osceola Pines, an approximately 545 acre timber operation in Levy County, holds a mature cypress and wetland hardwood basin swamp alongside its pine plantations. The easement totals $1,030,000, with $515,000 provided through the USDA. The state says the program has now permanently preserved more than 241,000 acres of working agricultural land.

  An easement keeps a tract growing timber instead of turning into lots, so the crews and suppliers who work it keep a customer. The easement itself is a package of professional work before any of that.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • consulting foresters
  • timber cruisers
  • logging and thinning crews
  • log haulers
  • tree planting contractors
  • land surveyors
  • land appraisers

  Keeping Levy County pine and cypress in working hands protects rural jobs and the water the swamp holds back.

  Fuente: Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services

• Northwest Florida (Panhandle & Capital)· anunciado 2026-08-05

  Apalachicola Bay's oyster season gets a 2,560 bag limit

  On August 5, 2026 the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission set the harvest levels for the next Apalachicola Bay oyster season. The season begins October 1, 2026 and continues through February 28, 2027, with a total annual harvest limit of 2,560 bags across three approved reef sites, NWFW Cat Point, Cat Point Spur, and Peanut Ridge. Endorsed commercial and permitted recreational harvesters may take part. The commission also said restoration work is starting in Dixie, Levy, and Citrus Counties to support the long term recovery and sustainability of oyster populations.

  A measured season on the bay puts boats, tongs, and buyers back to work on a fishery that spent years closed. The whole chain from the water to the plate turns on those dates.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • oyster harvesters
  • seafood dealers
  • shellfish processors
  • ice houses
  • boat and motor repair shops
  • marinas and fuel docks

  A limited harvest lets the Apalachicola Bay oyster industry work while the reefs keep rebuilding under it.

  Fuente: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

• Northwest Florida (Panhandle & Capital)· reportado 2026-06-26

  A lethal palm disease is confirmed in western Leon County

  On June 26, 2026 UF/IFAS Extension Leon County reported that symptomatic palms sampled in western Leon County were confirmed to carry the phytoplasma responsible for lethal bronzing. Confirming it means drilling into the palm trunk to collect phloem tissue for laboratory testing. Once a palm has the disease there is no treatment, and the recommendation is to remove it as soon as possible after confirmation. Only nearby palms can be treated ahead of time, with the antibiotic oxytetracycline, to try to prevent infection. The American palm cixiid spreads the disease, and the extension office warns that insecticides used against it will also hit other insects and pollinators.

  A disease that is confirmed by a lab and treated by removal turns into scheduled work for the people who test, treat, cut, and replace palms across the Panhandle.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • tree services
  • arborists
  • plant diagnostic labs
  • landscape maintenance firms
  • palm nurseries
  • pest control operators

  Finding the disease early and taking infected palms down protects the ones still standing along the Capital region's streets.

  Fuente: UF/IFAS Extension Leon County

• Northeast Florida (First Coast)· 2026-08-04

  A 1,131 acre Putnam County timber property is protected for good

  The same August 4, 2026 announcement covered Patricia Flanders, an approximately 1,131 acre timber property in Putnam County lying near Ocklawaha Lake. It is a mix of sandhill, planted timber, and riparian wetlands. The rural lands protection easement totals $1,301,000. Together with the Levy County tract, the two easements protect more than 1,675 acres of working agricultural land.

  Planted timber on this scale is a standing order for the people who plant it, thin it, burn it, and haul it. An easement is the signal that the order will still be there in twenty years.

  A quiénes les sirve

  • consulting foresters
  • tree planting contractors
  • thinning crews
  • log truckers
  • prescribed burn services
  • forestry equipment dealers

  Holding Putnam County timberland in private working hands protects First Coast rural jobs and the wetlands beside the lake.

  Fuente: Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services

• We count each business by the date it registered with the state, so this shows new business formation, not the current number of farms, ranches, or fishing operations.
• State records post about 2 weeks behind, so the last week or two will keep rising as more filings arrive.
• Most crop and livestock production in Florida needs no state business license, so formation records are the earliest public signal a new operation exists. Aquaculture, commercial fishing, and seafood dealing are different: those register with FDACS or FWC and are separately verifiable.
• Counts cover active Florida businesses and update daily.

Preguntas frecuentes

Where are the most new agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting businesses forming in Florida?

This report ranks every Florida region by new agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting businesses and shows if activity is heating up or slowing down.

Does a Florida farm or ranch need a state license?

Most crop and livestock production does not. Some parts of the sector do: aquaculture producers register with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and commercial fishing and seafood dealing run on licenses and endorsements from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

What is an agricultural enclave?

It is a certification a landowner can now ask for under a state law that took effect on July 1, 2026. The owner of a qualifying agricultural parcel applies to the local government, the local government holds a public hearing within a set time to approve or deny it, and a certified owner may then submit development plans. A certified parcel may be developed for commercial, industrial, or single family residential use in certain circumstances.

What paperwork does livestock need to enter Florida?

It depends where the animals are coming from. As of July 1, 2026 Colorado and New Mexico are the states affected by vesicular stomatitis, and hoofed animals entering Florida from either one need an Official Certificate of Veterinary Inspection dated within five days of entry, signed by an accredited veterinarian, plus a prior permission number written on the certificate. Animals going straight from an approved market to an approved Florida slaughter facility skip the certificate but still need the permission number.

Where does this data come from?

The formation counts come from official Florida business registration records. We pull every new filing, sort it by industry and region, and update daily. We count a business by the date it registered with the state. The news items come from state agency pages, county commission records, and the university extension offices.

Can I see the actual businesses?

Yes. You get the real filings, with business names, addresses, and officers, free for 7 days, with no credit card required. Start a free 7 day trial to see them.

The standing resources behind Florida farming, ranching, forestry, fishing, and hunting businesses, starting with the statewide licensing portals and associations, then the local research center, extension center, or county Farm Bureau for each region. This is the reference shelf, not the news. Check it to see the resources a new operation uses, or send a new operation here.