| NCCa | USDA FNDDSb | USDA SRc | USDA FDC FFd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of foods in the database | 19,585 | 5,624 | 7,793 | 287 |
| Approximate number of brand name foods | 8,304 | Not Available | 800 | None |
| Number of restaurants | 23 (all menu items) | Not Available | 20 (some menu items) | None |
| Number of nutrients, nutrient ratios & other food components | 178 | 65 | 148 | 478 |
| Completeness of nutrient values | 92-100% | 100% | 0-100% | Low levels of completenesse |
| Update and release schedule | Yearly | Every two years | No longer released – Final update 2018 | Twice a year (April and October) |
aUniversity of Minnesota Nutrition Coordinating Center Food and Nutrient Database, 2024.
bUnited States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies, 2019-20.
cUnited States Department of Agriculture National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference (SR), Legacy.
dUnited States Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central: Foundation Foods. Version Current: April 2024.
e Completeness of nutrient values is low because foods are analyzed for a limited number of nutrients. For example, oils would have analytic values assigned for total fat, fatty acids, and fat-soluble vitamins. But, analytic values would not be assigned for nutrients not found or found in only small amounts in oils (e.g. protein, carbohydrate, calcium, iron, amino acids, etc.)
*It is important to note that although there are commercial databases that contain more foods than the NCC database, the nutrients available in these databases are generally limited to those included on the Nutrition Facts label. As a result, non-label nutrients of interest such as caffeine, carotenoids, and individual fatty acids such as omega-3s are generally not included in these databases. Also, the completeness of the data in commercial databases tends to be low for a number of nutrients of high interest, rendering these databases of limited use in research and many other applications. As an example, although the ESHA database includes over 99,999 food items the level of completeness is low for some nutrients (e.g., 60% complete for potassium, 48% complete for zinc, and 20% complete for vitamin D).