USDA's FoodData Central: What is it and why is it needed today?

Abstract

FoodData Central (FDC) is the center of the USDA-based food-composition information web. It is an integrated data system that presently provides - in 1 place - 5 distinct types of data containing information on food and nutrient profiles. Each data type has a unique purpose. Two of the data types - Foundation Foods (FF) and Experimental Foods (EF) - represent "a bridge to the future"in food and nutrient composition. They provide data and metadata that have never previously been available from a database. The other 3 data types are well established and familiar to many users: Standard Reference (SR) Legacy, Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (FNDDS), and Global Branded Foods Products Database (GBFPD). After >100 y of maintaining food-composition data within the USDA, it was clear that change was needed to respond to the rapid increase in the number and variety of foods in the food supply, evolution of analytical approaches, and new agricultural practices and products. FDC is USDA's answer to the challenge of providing reliable, web-based, transparent, and easily accessible information about the nutrients and other components of foods to meet the increasingly diverse needs of many audiences, including public health professionals, agricultural and environmental researchers, policy makers, nutrition professionals, health care providers, product developers, and the public at large.