Things to Come in 2015

Abstract

As we start 2015, the Journal of Food Science is living up to the phrase “out with the old and in with the new.” This will be comparable to renovating your home – the basic structure remains the same, but functional modernizations are added. One of our changes is updating the name of the section currently called “Food Engineering and Physical Properties” to “Food Engineering and Materials Science.” The Scientific Editor for this section, Professor Shyam Sablani, eloquently described the updated goal of this section by stating that – “Manuscripts submitted to this section should provide evidence of advancing quantitative understanding of the food processes and/or mechanistic behavior of food and packaging materials.” The focus on Food Materials Science emphasizes that the manuscripts should be revealing fundamental mechanisms of how molecules and structures contribute to the function in materials and not be just measurements of physical properties. The second new item is a formal procedure where we can Fast Track the top articles through the system. At this stage of development, I will just offer a preview and state that our goal is to advance the top articles having potential for the greatest scientific impact through the system as fast as possible. A formal process is being developed and will be rolled out in early 2015. Some of these articles may also be of the caliber that they become a Feature Article and grace the cover of the journal. We want to publish manuscripts that have the greatest potential to advance the field of Food Science and hope these opportunities will provide added incentives for submitting to the Journal of Food Science. The last item fits the category of updating a historical feature. Authors who present at the Annual Meeting are asked to submit their work to the Journal of Food Science; however, it has become more of a statement to glance over when submitting your abstract than a true call to authorship. The Scientific and Associate Editors are working on ways to identify excellent symposia and then encourage those presenters to convert their talks to manuscripts. We have all heard outstanding symposia and walked away thinking it would make a nice series of articles. Our objective will be to make that a lot easier to come to fruition. Our goal has always been to publish the best of Food Science and that remains our guiding star. At the same time, we would be foolish to ignore that there are many journal options available for the broad range of research areas that fit under the umbrella of Food Science. I hope these forthcoming changes, and those to come, will provide some new incentives to submit your work to the Journal of Food Science. Stay tuned for more new features as 2015 unfolds. Sincerely, –E. Allen Foegeding, Ph.D. Editor in Chief, IFT Scientific Journals