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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BHNRC) » Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center » Nutrient Data Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #230658
Title: USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 21

Author
item Gebhardt, Susan
item Lemar, Linda
item Haytowitz, David
item Pehrsson, Pamela
item Nickle, Melissa
item Showell, Bethany
item Thomas, Robin
item Exler, Jacob
item Holden, Joanne

Submitted to: USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference
Publication Type: Other
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/20/2008
Publication Date: 9/1/2008
Citation: Gebhardt, S.E., Lemar, L.E., Haytowitz, D.B., Pehrsson, P.R., Nickle, M.S., Showell, B.A., Thomas, R.G., Exler, J., Holden, J.M. 2008. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 21. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. Available: http://www.ars.usda.gov/nutrientdata.

Interpretive Summary: The USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 21 (SR21) is the major source of food composition data in the United States and provides the foundation for most public and private sector food composition databases. SR21 contains nutrient data for 7,414 food items for up to 140 food components, such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fatty acids. It replaces the previous release, SR20 issued in September 2007. SR21 includes new data for a number of foods analyzed under the National Food and Nutrient Analysis Program (NFNAP), a program designed to 1) identify those foods that are the major contributors of nutrients to the U.S. diet, 2) conduct a probability-based nationwide sampling of those foods, and 3) analyze the samples under USDA- supervised laboratory contracts. Major changes made to the SR database since the last release include the updating of many nutrient values in all food groups with new data from NFNAP, food companies, and the scientific literature. The following new foods have been added to the database: 28 brand-name soy milk items, 66 soy-based vegetarian items, 12 new breakfast cereals, 4 types of dark chocolate representing different cacao levels, pie crusts, pomegranate juice, refried beans, grass fed-bison and beef, rotisserie chicken items, new pork value-cuts, and USDA commodity egg mix and meats. As part of the American Indian/Alaska Native database, data on 6 stellar sea lion food items (meat and organs) were added. Data were updated for cottage cheese, sour cream, infant formulas, farmed Atlantic salmon, crème-filled snack cakes, snack crackers, chocolate sandwich cookies, chocolate chip cookies, pie crust, brand-name soups, and several snack items. A number of dry soup and sauce mixes (38 items) and beef items trimmed to ¼ inch fat (266 items) which are no longer on the market were removed from the database. Uniform Retail Meat Identity Standards (URMIS)is an industry program that simplifies and standardizes the perplexing array of fresh meat cuts and their names. URMIS identification numbers are now included for 190 beef and 44 pork items. Update files are provided for users who have incorporated SR20 or earlier releases into their systems and wish to perform their own updates. The data are available to search or download from the Nutrient Data Laboratory Web site (www.ars.usda.gov/nutrientdata) on the Internet. Currently the Web site is being accessed over 200,000 times a month. Major applications of SR include the development and revision of the Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Surveys (FNDDS) by the ARS Food Surveys Research Group. The FNDDS is used to process dietary data records from the survey What We Eat in America, the dietary intake component of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Technical Abstract: The USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 21 contains data for 7,414 food items for up to 140 food components when a complete profile is available for a food item. It replaces the previous release, SR20, issued in September 2007. Data in SR21 supersede values in the printed Handbooks and previous electronic releases of the database. Major applications of SR include the development of the Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Surveys (FNDDS) by the Food Surveys Research Group. The FNDDS is used to process dietary data records from the survey What We Eat in America, the dietary intake component of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Major changes made to the SR database since the last release include the updating of many nutrient values in all food groups with new data from National Food and Nutrient Analysis Program (NFNAP), food companies, and the scientific literature. The following new foods have been added to the database: 28 brand-name soy milk items, 66 soy-based vegetarian items, 12 new breakfast cereals, 4 types of dark chocolate representing different cacao levels, several types of pie crusts, pomegranate juice, refried beans, grass-fed bison and beef, several rotisserie chicken items, new pork value-cuts, and USDA commodity egg mix and meats. As part of the American Indian/Alaska Native database, data on 6 stellar sea lion food items(meat and organs) were added. A complete list of the added food items is in the ADD_FOOD file. Data were updated for cottage cheese, sour cream, infant formulas, farmed Atlantic salmon, crème-filled snack cakes, snack crackers, chocolate sandwich cookies, chocolate chip cookies, pie crust, brand-name soups, and several snack items. These can be found in the CHG_NUTR file. A number of dry soup and sauce mixes (38 items) and beef items trimmed to ¼ inch fat (266 items) which are no longer on the market were removed from the database. A complete list of deleted food items is in the DEL_FOOD file.Uniform Retail Meat Identity Standards(URMIS) is an industry program that simplifies and standardizes the perplexing array of fresh meat cuts and their names. URMIS identification numbers are now included for 190 beef and 44 pork items. The database is being provided in the two relational formats (ASCII and Microsoft Access). There are four principal files: Food Description, Nutrient Data, Gram Weight, and Footnotes, and six support files: Nutrient Definition, Food Group Description, Source Code, Derivation Code, Sources of Data File, and Sources of Data Link files. An update file for the database, intended for users who have obtained SR20 or earlier releases and wish to perform their own updates, is provided. An abbreviated file is provided as a flat file and as a MS Excel spreadsheet. The abbreviated file does not include values for alcohol, caffeine, phytosterols, starch, theobromine, vitamin D, individual amino acids, fatty acids, individual sugars, fluoride,or betaine. The data are available to search or download from the Nutrient Data Laboratory Web site on the Internet http://www.ars.usda.gov/nutrientdata.