Journal profile · Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Journal of Food Safety
ISSN 0149-6085 · eISSN 1745-4565 · Wiley-Blackwell · UNITED STATES · Quarterly · Founded 1977
Journal of Food Safety: CAS Zone 4 · Agricultural & Forestry Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 2.64; hybrid open access; APC about USD 3,790; median 112 days to acceptance (83 articles, last 24 months); community-reported acceptance: easy; 58 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Journal of Food Safety is published by Wiley-Blackwell and is in Zone 4 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Listeria monocytogenes in Food Safety, Salmonella and Campylobacter epidemiology and Essential Oils and Antimicrobial Activity, together about 34% of its articles. Its main subfields are Food Science. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
This fully peer-reviewed international journal provides microbiologists, food processors, and food researchers with essential information on microbial food safety.The Journal of Food Safety encourages submissions of full-length original research articles relating to the following topics: Rapid methods and/or biosensors for detection, identification and enumeration of foodborne pathogens, Novel interventions and technologies to control foodborne pathogens, Bacteriophages or bacteriophage derived compounds as alternative antimicrobials/antibiotics to improve food safety, Novel antimicrobials, Antimicrobial packaging, Food microbiome, Predictive microbiology, and Advances in food safety research on bacteriophage-host interactions. Book reviews related to the field of food microbiology and food safety are welcome. Review paper topics must receive editor approval prior to submission. Short communications on exceptionally novel research of interest to the international food microbiology community will be considered.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Editorial board by country: 5 in mainland China (about 23%); most named United States 9, Mainland China 5, Taiwan, China 4, South Korea 1, Italy 1 (22 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 Biology17.2%
- Salmonella and Campylobacter epidemiologyAgricultural and Biological Sciences8.8%
- Essential Oils and Antimicrobial ActivityAgricultural and Biological Sciences8%
- Food Safety and HygieneAgricultural and Biological Sciences7.9%
- Meat and Animal Product QualityAgricultural and Biological Sciences7.2%
- Microbial Inactivation MethodsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology7.2%
- Probiotics and Fermented FoodsAgricultural and Biological Sciences6.7%
- Identification and Quantification in FoodBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology3.3%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Food Science & Technology | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Indexing the journal's website claims
PubMedINSPECCASCAB AbstractsCurrent ContentsPublisher website
Other: EBSCO, ProQuest, AGRICOLA
As the journal's website lists them, not checked against each database; for Web of Science editions the records above apply.
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
- 2.64LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 2.7Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 4.3LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 4.3Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.42LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.49LetPub ·
- h-index
- 37LetPub ·
- h-index
- 72OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 1,153OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 2.97OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 0%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 26.82%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 44LetPub ·
- Articles per year (publisher) 2025
- 44Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 104,775Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 2,535 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 51 | 16 | 9 |
| 2025 | 58 | 30 | 106 |
| 2024 | 88 | 40 | 471 |
| 2023 | 72 | 31 | 478 |
| 2022 | 80 | 11 | 549 |
| 2021 | 85 | 11 | 962 |
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 Crossref · to
112 daysMedian, submission to acceptance · P25–P75 87 days – 137 days
- Acceptance to online
- median 14 days (83 articles)
- Submission to online
- median 127 days
- Sample
- 83 articles with submission and acceptance dates (114 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)
- 6–12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
- Acceptance rate (publisher) 2025
- 10%Publisher website ·
- Submission to first decision 2025
- 21 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance 2025
- 109 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication 2025
- 14 daysPublisher website ·
- Peer review
- Single-anonymous peer reviewPublisher website · model-extracted
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 3,790 / EUR 3,160 / GBP 2,550 | — | — |
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 prepare4 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- ≤ 6
- First submission
- Free format: the journal's layout is not required
- Graphical abstract
- Required
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAuthorship, Conflicts of interest, Data availability, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Self-archiving
- Authorship Authorship
Please refer to the journal’s authorship policy the Editorial Policies and Ethical Considerations section for details on eligibility for author listing.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Conflict of Interest Statement
Authors will be asked to provide a conflict of interest statement during the submission process. For details on what to include in this section, see the section ‘Conflict of Interest’ in the Editorial Policies and Ethical Considerations section below. Submitting authors should ensure they liaise with all co-authors to confirm agreement with the final statement.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Data availability Data Sharing and Data Accessibility
Please review Wiley’s policy here. This journal expects data sharing.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics Publication Ethics
COPE member Model summary
This journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). Note this journal uses iThenticate’s CrossCheck software to detect instances of overlapping and similar text in submitted manuscripts. Read Wiley'sTop 10 Publishing Ethics Tips for Authors here. Wiley’s Publication Ethics Guidelines can be found here.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright For authors signing the copyright transfer agreement
If the Open Access option is not selected the corresponding author will be presented with the copyright transfer agreement (CTA) to sign. The terms and conditions of the CTA can be previewed in the samples associated with the Copyright FAQs.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access For authors choosing Open Access
If the Open Access option is selected the corresponding author will have a choice of the following Creative Commons License Open Access Agreements (OAA):
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer Review and Acceptance
The acceptance criteria for all papers are the quality and originality of the research and its significance to journal readership. Papers will only be sent to review if the Editor determines that the paper meets the appropriate quality and relevance requirements.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Self-archiving Self-Archiving Definitions and Policies
Note that the journal’s standard copyright agreement allows for self-archiving of different versions of the article under specific conditions. Please click here for more detailed information about self-archiving definitions and policies.
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
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Country or region
- UNITED STATES
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Quarterly
- Founded
- 1977
- ISSN
- 0149-6085
- Electronic ISSN
- 1745-4565
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 46, Issue 5 (October 2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Journal of Food Safety
What CAS zone is Journal of Food Safety in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Journal of Food Safety is in Zone 4 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology / Food Science & Technology. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Journal of Food Safety?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 2.64; CiteScore 4.3, h-index 72.
How long does peer review take at Journal of Food Safety?
Based on the dates recorded on 83 articles published between October 2024 and October 2026 (the last 24 months), the median time from submission to acceptance is 112 days (interquartile range 87–137 days); authors report an average review time of 6–12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”; the journal's website gives an acceptance rate of 10% (2025). 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 Journal of Food Safety?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: ≤ 6; First submission: Free format: the journal's layout is not required; Graphical abstract: 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 Journal of Food Safety based?
Of the 22 board members whose country the journal's board page names, 5 (about 23%) are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (9), Mainland China (5) and Taiwan, China (4). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Journal of Food Safety?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Journal of Food Safety is indexed in SCIE and Scopus. The journal's website also lists PubMed, INSPEC, CAS, CAB Abstracts and Current Contents; that list has not been checked against each database.
Is Journal of Food Safety open access, and what is the APC?
Journal of Food Safety is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC about USD 3,790.
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: .