Journal profile · Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Food Microbiology
ISSN 0740-0020 · eISSN 1095-9998 · Academic Press Inc. · ENGLAND · Bimonthly · Founded 1984
Food Microbiology: CAS Zone 1 · Agricultural & Forestry Sciences (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal); impact factor 5.4; hybrid open access; APC about USD 4,210; median 88 days to acceptance (95 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: about 25%; 243 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Food Microbiology is published by Academic Press Inc. and is in Zone 1 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition, Top journal). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Listeria monocytogenes in Food Safety, Probiotics and Fermented Foods and Microbial Inactivation Methods, together about 36.1% of its articles. Its main subfields are Food Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Food Microbiology publishes original research articles, short research communications, opinions, and review papers on all aspects of the microbiology of foods and food environments, including safety, shelf-life, diagnostics, ecology, and sensory attributes. The Journal aims to advance the microbiology of foods by discoveries, increasing knowledge, research tools, and concepts. The global audience includes academia, government, industry, and competent authorities. The journal considers articles dealing with the application, association, or prevention of viruses, bacteria, yeast, and molds related to foods or food environments through physical, biological, chemical, diagnostics, application of omics, or training/education. The application of advanced tools such as artificial intelligence, bioinformatics, and omics is encouraged. The following categories and examples that are within the scope of Food Microbiology:Food processing: Papers that report on intervention methods (physical, biological or chemical) related to inactivation and control of microbes will be considered. The articles should demonstrate optimization (validation) and verification with relevant microbes for the food matrix being reported. The use of protective cultures, microbial metabolites, and bacteriophages, amongst others, will be considered provided efficacy is demonstrated within food systems. Studies relating to natural antimicrobials (for example, bacteriocins, phenolic compounds, or essential oils) can be included, although these should be chemically characterized and novel without simply confirming previous findings. Food fermentations: The ecology, performance, and functionality of fermented foods would be within the journal's scope provided the reported study can be replicated and results applied to define, improve, or contribute to the body of knowledge. Using omics to characterize, correlate, and/or identify populations or to study community assembly in fermented foods is encouraged. Findings of omics are preferably verified and not solely based on sequencing, metabolic profiles, and correlation software. Probiotic studies will be within scope but only if these relate to the interaction of stability within a food system rather than the gastrointestinal tract or effects on the immune system. Food processing environments: The prevalence of pathogens or spoilage microbes within the processing environment can be considered if linked to a production practice or process. The control of biofilms by bacterial strains or communities is within scope if evidence of biofilm formation within a simulated commercial environment exists. Biofilms formed on surfaces not encountered within food processing environments, such as microtiter plates, will not be considered. Pre-harvest microbiology of foods: Aspects of microbiology, ecology, and control of microbes encountered in animal or plant production that impact food safety and/or shelf-life are considered. Survey and prevalence studies: The prevalence of pathogens, including antimicrobial resistance, would be considered within the journal if sampled over a reasonable time period and geographical region and linked to a practice or procedure (for example, administration of antibiotics, cage-free production, amongst others). Risk assessment and predictive microbiology: Studies reporting on risk assessment or predictive microbiology, including the application of artificial intelligence, are within the journal's scope provided they relate to the activity of microbes within a food or processing environment. Microbiology diagnostics: Diagnostics, including biosensors, for detecting microbes are within scope provided they are tested using a sufficient spectrum of strains to assess selectivity and sensitivity. Detection of targets with relevant food systems should also be demonstrated. Food safety education and training tools: Training or teaching approaches and training tools can be considered, provided the learning approac
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Editor-in-chief Keith K. WarrinerPublisher website
Editorial board by country: 14 in mainland China (about 18%); most named Mainland China 14, Italy 13, Spain 11, Canada 9, United States 8 (79 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Listeria monocytogenes in Food SafetyBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology16.1%
- Probiotics and Fermented FoodsAgricultural and Biological Sciences11.6%
- Microbial Inactivation MethodsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology8.5%
- Fermentation and Sensory AnalysisAgricultural and Biological Sciences6.6%
- Salmonella and Campylobacter epidemiologyAgricultural and Biological Sciences6.5%
- Meat and Animal Product QualityAgricultural and Biological Sciences6.5%
- Food Safety and HygieneAgricultural and Biological Sciences5.4%
- Essential Oils and Antimicrobial ActivityAgricultural and Biological Sciences4.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Microbiology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 2 |
| Minor | Microbiology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 1
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 1 |
| Minor | Microbiology | Zone 2 |
Top journal: yesReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
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
- 5.4LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher)
- 5.4Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 10.5LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 10.5Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.32LetPub ·
- h-index
- 103LetPub ·
- h-index
- 179OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 4,267OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 5.04OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 3.7%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 27.09%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 223LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 6,125 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 247 | 74 | 135 |
| 2025 | 243 | 85 | 1,117 |
| 2024 | 213 | 91 | 2,290 |
| 2023 | 188 | 86 | 2,751 |
| 2022 | 181 | 87 | 3,884 |
| 2021 | 203 | 76 | 5,140 |
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
88 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 69 days – 126 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 1 days (95 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 92 days
- Sample
- 95 articles with submission and acceptance dates (525 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 4.5 monthsLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- 25%LetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 5 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 47 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 98 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 2 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewPublisher website
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
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAlex | USD 4,210 / EUR 3,940 / GBP 3,370 / JPY 522,170 | — | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 3,770 | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
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
- Manuscript length
- ≤ 9,000 words
- Reference style
- Author–date
- Highlights
- Required
Article types accepted7, with length limits
- correspondenceResearch Paper: These should report original research and follow the formatting described in the guide for authors. Papers should aim for no more than 9000 word…main text ≤ 1,500 words
- opinionResearch Paper: These should report original research and follow the formatting described in the guide for authors. Papers should aim for no more than 9000 word…Length not stated
- original researchResearch Paper: These should report original research and follow the formatting described in the guide for authors. Papers should aim for no more than 9000 word…Length not stated
- research paperResearch Paper: These should report original research and follow the formatting described in the guide for authors. Papers should aim for no more than 9000 word…Length not stated
- reviewResearch Paper: These should report original research and follow the formatting described in the guide for authors. Papers should aim for no more than 9000 word…main text ≤ 12,000 words
- review articleResearch Paper: These should report original research and follow the formatting described in the guide for authors. Papers should aim for no more than 9000 word…Length not stated
- short communicationResearch Paper: These should report original research and follow the formatting described in the guide for authors. Papers should aim for no more than 9000 word…Length not stated
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
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
open access options available Model summary
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 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
- Academic Press Inc.
- Country or region
- ENGLAND
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Bimonthly
- Founded
- 1984
- ISSN
- 0740-0020
- Electronic ISSN
- 1095-9998
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Food Microbiology
What CAS zone is Food Microbiology in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Food Microbiology is in Zone 1 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences, and in Zone 1 of the minor category Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology / Food Science & Technology / Microbiology; it is a Top journal. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 1 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Food Microbiology?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 5.4; CiteScore 10.5, h-index 179.
How long does peer review take at Food Microbiology?
Based on the dates recorded on 95 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 88 days (interquartile range 69–126 days); authors report an average review time of about 4.5 months; the community-reported acceptance is “about 25%”. 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 Microbiology?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Manuscript length: ≤ 9,000 words; Reference style: Author–date; Highlights: Required. 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 Microbiology based?
Of the 79 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 14 (about 18%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are Mainland China (14), Italy (13) and Spain (11). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Food Microbiology?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Food Microbiology is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Food Microbiology open access, and what is the APC?
Food Microbiology is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 4,210.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex; 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: .