What are food composition databases, and why are they needed?
Food composition databases provide detailed information on the nutritional composition of foods. For example the database will provide values for the amount of energy, protein, fat, vitamins and minerals that a food item contains. These values are either based on chemical analyses which are carried out in analytical laboratories or are derived, in the case of composite foods, from the nutrient composition of ingredients. For example, in the case of lasagne, the nutrient value of pasta, minced beef, tomatoes and other ingredients are used to estimate the composition of 100g of lasagne. Data on the composition of foods are essential for a variety of purposes in many fields of work. The table in the attached pdf outlines some of the users and uses of this data. Many organisations are involved in the analysis of foods, the compilation of data, data dissemination and data use. Therefore this data needs to be of a good-quality, and meet the requirements of the multiple users of food composit
