Journal profile · FOOD SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences
ISSN 2666-5662 · Elsevier · United Kingdom
Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences: CAS Zone 2 · Agricultural & Forestry Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 4.8 (journal website); fully open access; APC about USD 2,730; median 97 days to acceptance (101 articles, last 24 months); 111 articles in 2025; indexed in ESCI and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences is published by Elsevier and is in Zone 2 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Meat and Animal Product Quality, Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Activities and Plant Gene Expression Analysis, together about 22.9% of its articles. Its main subfields are Molecular Biology. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences is one of three companion journals to the highly respected Food Chemistry.Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences is an open access journal publishing research advancing the theory and practice of molecular sciences of foods.The types of articles considered are original research articles, analytical methods, comprehensive reviews and commentaries.Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences considers articles about:Problems of broad interest in food or interactions between food and humans; this does NOT include food isolates or folk and traditional medicines to treat disease.Experimental techniques and technical progress using omic methods (genomics, proteomics or metabolomics) to characterise and quantify molecules that impact the structure, function, and dynamics of foods or the interactions between foods as consumed and humans; this does NOT include single compounds or isolates at concentrations above dietary intakes.Application of molecular theories and novel technologies to specific experimental studies including computational methods and models; this does NOT include treatment of disease in plants or humans.Topics include:Molecular sciences relating to major and minor components of food (nutrients and bioactives) and their physiological, sensory, flavour, and microbiological aspects; data must be sufficient to demonstrate relevance to foods and as consumed by humansChanges in molecular composition or structure in foods occurring or induced during growth, distribution and processing (industrial or domestic) or as a result of human metabolismQuality, safety, authenticity and traceability of foods and packaging materialsValorisation of food waste arising from processing and exploitation of by-productsMolecular sciences of additives, contaminants including agro-chemicals, together with their metabolism, food fate and benefit: risk to human healthNovel analytical and computational (bioinformatics) methods related to foods as consumed, nutrients and bioactives, sensory, metabolic fate, and origins of foods. Articles must be concerned with new or novel methods or novel uses and must be applied to real-world samples to demonstrate robustness. Those dealing with significant improvements to existing methods or foods and commodities from different regions, and re-use of existing data will be considered, provided authors can establish sufficient originality.Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences will not consider papers that focus on purely clinical or engineering aspects, pharmaceutical or non-food herbal remedies; traditional or folk medicines or survey/surveillance data. Papers on therapeutic application of food compounds/ isolates for treatment, cure or prevention of human diseases will not be considered.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): FOOD SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Editor-in-chief Sian AstleyPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 6 in mainland China (about 18%); most named Brazil 7, Mainland China 6, Italy 5, Poland 3, United States 2 (33 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Meat and Animal Product QualityAgricultural and Biological Sciences8.3%
- Phytochemicals and Antioxidant ActivitiesMedicine8.1%
- Plant Gene Expression AnalysisBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology6.6%
- Postharvest Quality and Shelf Life ManagementAgricultural and Biological Sciences6%
- Fermentation and Sensory AnalysisAgricultural and Biological Sciences6%
- Protein Hydrolysis and Bioactive PeptidesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology6%
- Identification and Quantification in FoodBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology6%
- Probiotics and Fermented FoodsAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.1%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 2
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
Database indexing
ESCIScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 4.8Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 8.9LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 8.9Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.95LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.27LetPub ·
- h-index
- 32OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 120OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.1OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 2.1%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 100%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 100LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 447 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 110 | 110 | 49 |
| 2025 | 111 | 111 | 178 |
| 2024 | 43 | 43 | 328 |
| 2023 | 31 | 31 | 333 |
| 2022 | 87 | 87 | 1,771 |
| 2021 | 59 | 59 | 1,459 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Review time from article dates manuscript dates registered with PubMed · to
97 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 75 days – 128 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 2 days (101 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 100 days
- Sample
- 101 articles with submission and acceptance dates (242 in the window); the latest was accepted on
Only articles that were accepted and published are counted, not the time spent on rejected manuscripts, so this usually runs longer than a publisher's "time to first decision".
Other sources
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 15 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 6 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 42 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 94 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 3 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 15 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | USD 2,730 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 2,320 / EUR 2,170 / GBP 1,860 / JPY 287,750 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 2,000 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 2,970 | — | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
What to prepare5 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Reference style
- APA
- Highlights
- Required
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
Article types accepted7, with length limits
- analytical methods3. Analytical Methods - original methods or adaptions of existing methods to improve scope and/ or outcomes or technologies demonstrating potential to be used i…Length not stated
- commentaryOriginal research article; Review article; Analytical Methods; Commentary. 1. Research article/Full-length article - original full-length research papers that h…Length not stated
- original research articleOriginal research article; Review article; Analytical Methods; Commentary. 1. Research article/Full-length article - original full-length research papers that h…Length not stated
- research articleOriginal research article; Review article; Analytical Methods; Commentary. 1. Research article/Full-length article - original full-length research papers that h…Length not stated
- research article/full-length article1. Research article/Full-length article - original full-length research papers that have not been published previously, except in a preliminary form.Length not stated
- research paperOriginal research article; Review article; Analytical Methods; Commentary. 1. Research article/Full-length article - original full-length research papers that h…main text ≤ 8,000 words
- review articleOriginal research article; Review article; Analytical Methods; Commentary. 1. Research article/Full-length article - original full-length research papers that h…main text ≤ 10,000 words
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics
Follows Elsevier's Publishing Ethics Policy Model summary
Authors must follow ethical guidelines stated in Elsevier's Publishing Ethics Policy.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Single anonymized review process Model summary
This journal follows a single anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharing allowed, does not count as prior publication Model summary
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication. In support of Open Science, this journal offers its authors a free preprint posting service on SSRN, Elsevier’s preprint and early research …
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- United Kingdom
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2666-5662
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗DOAJ
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗DOAJ
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗DOAJ
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences
What CAS zone is Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences is in Zone 2 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences, and in Zone 2 of the minor category Food Science & Technology. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 2 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences?
The journal's website gives an impact factor of 4.8; this is the journal's own figure, as LetPub lists none for it; CiteScore 8.9, h-index 32.
How long does peer review take at Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences?
Based on the dates recorded on 101 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 97 days (interquartile range 75–128 days); authors report an average review time of about 15 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: APA; Highlights: Required; Graphical abstract: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences based?
Of the 33 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 6 (about 18%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Brazil (7), Mainland China (6) and Italy (5). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences is indexed in ESCI, Scopus and DOAJ.
Is Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences open access, and what is the APC?
Food Chemistry: Molecular Sciences is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 2,730.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .