LibGuides: Food Science Resources: Recommended Resources

Books

A selection of key references and electronic textbook platforms for finding food science information.

Knovel Life Sciences, Chemistry, Food Science & Metals/ Metallurgy Collection This link opens in a new window
Includes almost 500 fully-searchable handbooks and reference works on topics such as food science, biochemistry, biology, biotechnology, chemistry, and more.

Dictionary of Food and Nutrition by Bender, D. A.
2014, 4th edition
Encyclopedia of Food and Health
Spans food production and processing from distribution and consumption to health effects.
2016, 1st edition
Encyclopedia of Food Chemistry
2019, 1st edition
Encyclopedia of Food Microbiology
2014, 2nd edition
Encyclopedia of Food Safety
2014, 1st edition
Encyclopedia of Meat Sciences
2014, 2nd edition
IFIS Dictionary of Food Science and Technology by International Food Information Service
2009, 2nd edition
Three simultaneous users only

Databases

Below is a selection of databases that are used in food science. Use these to search for journal articles related to your topic. If you need assistance with searching and using these resources please contact Andrea Kepsel, Food Science and Human Nutrition Librarian, at akepsel@msu.edu.

Food Science and Technology Abstracts (FSTA) This link opens in a new window
1969-
FSTA covers all areas of food science, food technology, and human nutrition, including basic food science, biotechnology, toxicology, packaging, and engineering. Some 1800 publications in over 40 languages are scanned regularly, including journals, reviews, standards, legislation, patents, books, theses, and conference proceedings.

IFIS has developed a helpful tutorial to using FSTA on the Web of Science platform. It is designed to give you an overview of FSTA content and the essential skills to search the FSTA database and find quality literature successfully.

CAB Abstracts This link opens in a new window
1910-
CAB covers the subject of agriculture in the broadest sense. It includes: agronomy, biotechnology, crop protection, dairy science, economics, environmental degradation and remediation, forestry, genetics, herbicides, irrigation, leisure, recreation and tourism, microbiology, nutrition, parasitology, rural development, veterinary medicine and much more. Journals, monographs, conferences, books, annual reports and other sources from more than one country are scanned regularly for inclusion in the database.
Biological Abstracts This link opens in a new window
Biological Abstracts is a comprehensive reference database covering life sciences journal literature. It covers the following fields: Botany, Microbiology, Pharmacology, Biochemistry, Evolutionary ecology, Kinseology, Neurology, and Toxicology. Coverage from 1926 to the present. Web of Science platform.
PubMed (Medline) This link opens in a new window
1966-
MEDLINE is the National Library of Medicine's premier bibliographic database covering the fields of medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, the health care system, and the preclinical sciences.

Note: Beginning June 1, 2021, users of NCBI services will need to login with their MSU Net ID instead of a NCBI-generated account. The NLM has more information about this change and how to link your existing NCBI account with your MSU Net ID. A Microsoft Word document containing step by step instructions is avaialble for download.
AGRICOLA This link opens in a new window
1970-
Covers every major agricultural subject, including agricultural engineering and marketing, animal breeding, entomology, environmental pollution, farm management, foods and feeds, pesticides, rural sociology, veterinary medicine, and water resources. Citations consist of journal articles, book chapters, monographs, conference proceedings, serials, technical reports, and other materials on a range of agricultural topics.
Animal Health and Production Compendium This link opens in a new window
The Animal Health and Production Compendium is a mixed multi-media reference tool, focusing on all aspects of animal health and production, including diseases, nutrition, husbandry, and breeding. Includes modules in poultry, pigs, and small and large ruminants, with text, pictures, graphs, maps, diagnostic aids, etc.
SciFinder-n This link opens in a new window
SciFinder-n is the new interface for the classic version of SciFinder. If you have already registered for Classic SciFinder, that login should work for SciFinder-n.
Business Source Complete This link opens in a new window
Provides access to articles in scholarly, peer-reviewed business journals, trade journals and business news publications. Includes the full-text of the Harvard Business Review. Also includes company profiles, investment research reports, industry reports, market research, country reports, SWOT analyses, and more.
Hospitality & Tourism Complete This link opens in a new window
Covers scholarly research and industry news relating to all areas of hospitality and tourism. Includes full-text articles, company and country reports, and books.
GovInfo This link opens in a new window
GovInfo is a service of the United States Government Publishing Office (GPO), which is a Federal agency in the legislative branch. govinfo provides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government, including Presidential Documents, the Congressional Record, Congressional bills and laws and regulations. The information provided on this site is the official, published version and the information retrieved from GovInfo can be used without restriction, unless specifically noted.
Web of Science This link opens in a new window
Includes the Institute for Scientific Information Citation Indexes - Arts and Humanities, Social Science, and Science. It indexes science, social sciences, and arts and humanities information from nearly 9,300 of the most prestigious, high impact research journals in the world.
Scopus This link opens in a new window
Find citations for a broad range of scientific literature (including patents) and track, analyze and visualize citations by document, author, zip code, or institution.

Browsing Journal Content

BrowZine and LibKey are tools that work with the MSU Libraries resources to help you browse, access, and stay up-to-date on the scholarly literature. For more information, visit the Third Iron guide.

BrowZine
BrowZine can be used to browse, read, and stay current with scientific literature. It is available both on the web and as a mobile app. Users can create a bookshelf of favorite journals, save individual articles to collections, and be alerted when new issues of journals are published.
LibKey Nomad
LibKey Nomad is a browser plugin available for
Firefox, Chrome, and Microsoft Edge. It
works with library subscriptions and open access sources to provide quick, one-click access to the full text of journal articles.
LibKey.io
LibKey.io can be used to quickly look up the full text of an article using its DOI or PubMed ID (PMID). If available, you can select either the PDF or HTML version of the full text. You can also add “libkey.io/” in front of any DOI or PMID in your browser’s search bar to search for the full text of an article.

Dissertations

Dissertations from most colleges and universities in North America can be located using Proquest Dissertations and Theses Global.

MSU Theses and Dissertations
This collection contains over 35,000 ETDs written at MSU dating from 1899 to the present. These are freely available without an MSU login.

ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive collection of fulltext dissertations and theses since 1997 and strong retrospective full text coverage for earlier periods. Includes MSU dissertations and theses.

Finding Disssertations and Theses
Guide from the MSU Libraries to help you obtain the full text of a doctoral dissertation or master's thesis.

The MSU Libraries do not normally purchase copies of dissertations from other institutions but many institutions are willing to loan copies of their dissertations. Copies of dissertations from other institutions can usually be obtained through InterLibrary Loan. Information about this service is available at the Get It @MSU section of the Main Library's home page.

Analytical Methods and Protocols

Resources for analytical methods and protocols.

Official Methods of Analysis of AOAC International This link opens in a new window
Searchable online access to chemical and microbiological analytical methods validated by AOAC International. AOAC-validated methods are used by government, industry, and academia throughout the world for analysis of a variety of commodities—particularly those related to food, agriculture, public health and safety, and the environment.
Springer Nature Experiments This link opens in a new window
Springer Nature Experiments incorporates Springer Protocols, Nature Methods, and Nature Protocols into one searchable database of laboratory protocols in the biomedical and life sciences. Springer Protocols contains all of the protocols from the book series Methods in Molecular Biology. Both Nature Protocols and Nature Methods are journals containing more recently published techniques.
Wiley Current Protocols Online This link opens in a new window
Current Protocols has been the leading source of laboratory protocols for over 25
years and now comprises more than 15,000 techniques and procedures across
17 titles.

Laboratory Protocols Resources for the Biological Sciences
Guide to laboratory protocol resources available from the MSU Libraries. Includes handbooks, book series, journals, and video collections.

Market and Industry Reports

Resources for locating company, market, and industry reports. Additional resources are available from the Gast Business Library.

BCC Research This link opens in a new window
Contains market research reports on topics in these industries: life sciences, materials, sensors, energy and the environment, and commerce including technology, manufacturing, finance and more.

Economic Census
Includes food-related industries. Generate reports by industry, geography, or product.

IBISWorld This link opens in a new window
Provides readable high level analysis for industries from the United States, some US states, worldwide, and in Canada and China. Includes supply chain, market share, and ease of entry industry data.
MarketLine This link opens in a new window
Provides companies profiles, industry reports, country and city information, case studies, financial deals, industry social media influencers, and news articles. Many of the company profiles have SWOT analyses and the industry reports have Porter's Five Forces analyses.
Mintel This link opens in a new window
Provides market research reports covering global consumer markets, with an emphasis on U.S. and European markets. The reports analyze market share, segmentation, trends, and consumer demographics. Also, has new product introductions in the consumer packaged goods market worldwide. Useful for anyone keeping track of trends in ingredients, packaging, and new market categories including food, beverages, beauty and personal care, household goods, and pet care. ***Formerly: Mintel Academic Reports and Mintel GNPD***
Passport GMID This link opens in a new window
An integrated on-line information system providing key business intelligence on countries, companies, markets and consumers.

Company Research
Guide from the Gast Business Library on where to search for company information.
Industry Research
Guide from the Gast Business Library on where to search for industry trends and analysis.

Food Composition and Nutrient Analysis

Resources for examining the make-up of foods and analyzing nutrients.

Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2015-2020
Released every 5 years by the USDA/DHHS.
Interactive DRI Calculator for Healthcare Professionals
Online tool that calculates an individual's daily nutrient recommendations based on the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs). For use by registered dietitians, nurse practitioners, doctors and others for dietary planning purposes.
MyPlate
MyPlate, from the USDA, includes nutrition information for over 8000 foods, customizable reports, and recipes.
USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Release 28
Nutrient database for over 8,618 different foods.
What's In The Foods You Eat Search Tool, 2017-2018
A searchable USDA database with nutrient profiles for 13,000 foods commonly eaten in the U.S. Includes familiar portion sizes.

Surveys and Test Instruments

Resources for finding research surveys and testing instruments. These can often be complicated to locate so do not hesitate to contact Andrea Kepsel, Food Science and Human Nutrition Librarian, at akepsel@msu.edu with questions.

Health and Psychosocial Instruments (HaPI) This link opens in a new window
Health and Psychosocial Instruments indexes journal articles that include both free and fee-based information-gathering instruments for clinicians such as tests, questionnaires, and scales. HaPI covers tests used in nursing, psychology, social work, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech & hearing therapy.

Tests and Testing Information
Guide to finding tests and surveys.

Websites

Government Websites

Codex Alimentarius
Food standards, guidelines, codes of practice, etc. to protect the health of consumers, ensure fair trade practices in the food trade, and promote coordination of all food standards work undertaken by international governmental and non-governmental organizations.
FDA Food Code
A reference document for regulatory agencies that ensure food safety in food service establishments, retail food stores, other food establishments at the retail level, and institutions such as nursing homes and child care centers.
Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.
FoodRisk.org
Online resource for food safety risk analysis, providing data, tutorials, tools, and links to numerous sources of information. Produced by the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN), a collaboration between the University of Maryland and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
FoodSafety.gov
Gateway to U.S. Government food safety information.
Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
Public health agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture responsible for ensuring that the nation's commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg products is safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged.
Food Safety Office. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Useful for statistics and general reports on food safety issues.
Food Safety Research Information Office
Collects, organizes and disseminates food safety research information to educators, industry, researchers and the general public.
Institute of Food Technologists (IFT)
A forum for passionate science of food professionals and technologists to collaborate, learn, and contribute all with the goal of inspiring and transforming collective scientific knowledge into innovative solutions for the benefit of all people around the world.
Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity Food Legislation Database
Search for legislation and get bill updates, information on failed bills and those enacted into law, and details on Congressional lobbying.
U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA)
The FDA is responsible for protecting the public health by ensuring the safety, efficacy, and security of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, and medical devices; and by ensuring the safety of our nation's food supply, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation.
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
Provides leadership on food, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues based on public policy, the best available science, and effective management.
World Health Organization e-Library Catalog
Search for WHO publications. Full-text links to documents are frequently provided.

Subject and Course Guides

Subject-specific guides from the MSU Libraries on topics related to food science and nutrition.

Food Safety
Resources for researching food safety topics and issues.
Food Studies
Food Studies is a growing, interdisciplinary field of interest, encompassing historical, social, cultural, philosophical, political, economic, environmental, and scientific aspects, among others.
Human Nutrition
Resources for conducting research in human nutrition and dietetics.
International Food Law and Regulations
Includes information on food law in Africa, Asia, Canada, the European Union, and Latin America.
Packaging
Resources for conducting research in packaging.
United States Food Law and Regulations
Includes resources for books, articles, laws, regulations, and links to federal government agencies.

MSU Libraries

Research Guides

Food Science Resources