Environmental Scan: Creative Confections "I've always loved being adventurous with food, especially desserts," said Lavonne Temple, founder of Creative Confections (CC), a small emerging specialty. bakery in Jacksonville, Florida. Starting with experimenting with cake and candy recipes in 2002, Temple grew a tidy little business selling delicious cakes and specialty candies from a home business. Growing demand for Temple's high-end homemade confections has recently placed CC on the brink of a major expansion. Over the next decade, CC can expect to encounter changing trends within the baking industry, each impacting the company's long-term environmental goals in remote, industrial and operational settings . Remote environmentLabeling – Planned changes to food labeling legislation will determine how CC labels the nutritional content of its cakes. Expanded labeling information requirements are expected in the future (Seiz, 2005). Strategic objective: CC must increase its knowledge of the composition of ingredients and associated derivatives in order to improve labeling and protect customers prone to allergies. Nutritional Issues – Consumer demand for low-fat, sugar-free, nutritionally fortified foods is not a fad, with 54% of consumers citing nutrition as the main factor influencing their food purchases (BakeryOnline.com , 2003). While the focus on these attributes is expected to continue, incorporating healthy elements into baked goods represents a lucrative market. Offering flavorful and nutritionally worthy cakes in the CC product line will attract health-conscious customers, bringing recipe adjustments into the realm of food science (BakeryOnline.com, 2004). Strategic objective: CC must integrate the ongoing collection of nutritional research and development data into its strategic plan. Globalization – The globalization of specialty desserts is growing steadily due to Internet marketing (Global Monitoring, 2004). By marketing its business on the Internet, CC will reach and satisfy a growing customer base. But first, CC needs to design a proper website, featuring colorful, high-resolution photographs of the specialty cakes it produces so consumers can see how the cakes are designed (Global Monitoring). By leveraging emerging web technology, CC's website could offer an interactive feature in which customers design a bespoke cake for a particular occasion by clicking a few buttons to view the finished cake design. Strategic Objective: Add a line of cakes to CC's product line that can be distributed fresh or frozen, which will create a niche Internet customer base based on CC's mission of quality and freshness. Industrial Environment Indulgent Factor – Market research indicates that indulgence will always be a consideration in baking. purchases, regardless of diet or health awareness, I.