Instructions for Authors
The editorship reserves the right to decline submissions or to propose alterations. All submitted articles are peerreviewed by experts. Articles must not be at the same time be offered to other publishers or authorities.
Copyright
All articles which have been published in this journal are protected by copyright. This also applies to databases and similar institutions. No part of this journal may be reproduced without the publisher's explicit permission (including fotocopies, micorofilms or similar procedures). It is also forbidden to translate any part of this journal into a language processed by machines, in particular by data processing equipment.
Checklist for authors
Manuscripts should be submitted to the Manuscript System. Please indicate that you have read and complied with the following checklist:
□ The manuscript itself and its submission to the Journal of Food Safety and Food Quality-Archiv fur Lebensmittelhygien have been approved by all authors. If a manuscript is accepted for publication, authors can choose between two models: a subscription model, where they transfer the copyright to the publisher without paying a fee, or a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License model, where they retain the copyright and pay an open access fee.
□ The manuscript has not been published previously and is not currently submitted to another journal.
□ The corresponding author is clearly indicated and the manuscript contains his or her complete address for correspondence.
□ The manuscipt has been prepared according to the instructions for authors.
Article Processing Charges (APC) Information
There are no Article Processing Charges for the publication of accepted manuscripts in the Journal of Food Safety and Food Quality. We operate on a subscription-based model so that there are no costs for authors.
Optionally, authors may pay an open access fee in order to make their articles available for readers that are not subscribed to The Journal of Food Safety and Food Quality. Open Access articles will be published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License and the copyright will remain with the authors. The open access fee amounts to 1500 Euro per article.
Instructions for authors: Manuscript preparation
Article formats and scope
Original work, including case studies and discussion papers dealing with topics from all areas of food hygiene (food originating from animals) including dairy hygiene, food monitoring, beef cattle and meat examination, meat hygiene and food technology will be considered for publication. Additionally, pertinent topics focusing on plant foods may also be submitted. Articles mostly written in English language, German are also acceptable. However, an English title and abstract are required for all submissions written in German.
Formatting
Manuscripts should be prepared using a suitable word processing software and sent as an editable file, preferrably ".docx“. Please note that certain other file formats, such as the outdated ".doc“ or compressed ".zip“ files, can pose certain risks and will therefore be blocked by our security system.
Please use double line spacing, continuous line numbering and page numbering.
All research articles must be structured as follows:
- Title Page
- Abstract
- Introduction
- Materials and Methods
- Results
- Discussion
- Conclusion (optional)
- Funding Statement (if applicable)
- Ethics statement (if applicable)
- Acknowledgments (if applicable)
- Conflicts of Interest
- References
The structure of the main body of the manuscript (Introduction – Conclusion) in review articles is replaced by the literature review, incorprating a structure and headings appropriate to the topic.
Title Page:
The following elements must be included:
- Title of the article
- Running title (max. 80 characters, including spaces)
- The first and family name(s) of author(s)
- Affiliation(s) of author(s), indicated by superscript numerals
- Name, full address, and e-mail address of the corresponding author.
- Keywords (3 – 5)
Abstract:
Each article is to be preceded by a succinct abstract of no more than 300 words, that highlights the objectives, methods, results, and conclusions of the paper.
Introduction:
Summarize the essential backround of the study and outline the current state of the research around the topic, citing relevant literature. The introduction should also clearly highlight the reason for conducting the study and its aim.
Materials and Methods:
Methods, sampling strategies and other protocols need to be described in enough detail to allow replication.
Results:
Concisely describe the results of the study. Highlight the important details of any Tables or Figures in the main text.
Discussion:
This section should point out the significance of the results in relation to the aim of the study and in relation to previoulsy published work in the field. A combined Results and Discussion section can be appropriate for some manuscripts. A short conclusion highlighting the major findings and key takeaways of your study should be included at the end of the discussion or, optionally, as a separate section.
Funding:
If financial support was provided for the study, sources of funding and grant numbers are listed here.
Ethics statement:
Research involving live animals has to be conducted in accordance with international standards and approval has to be obtained from an appropriate ethics committee prior to any experiments involving live animals. Authors need to provide a statement that approval has been given, provide the relevant permit number and confirm that all procedures were conducted in accordance with animal ethics and welfare.
Acknowledgments:
A brief statement where any other relevant support given (e.g. technical support, material donations, etc.) can be mentioned.
Declaration of Artificial Intelligence (AI)-Assisted Technology:
The use of generative artificial intelligence for creating and processing images, charts, or original research data in our publications is currently not permitted. Authors are required to disclose any use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies during the writing process. The use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in any part of the research process should always be conducted under human supervision and with transparency.
Conflict of Interest statement:
All authors are required to fully disclose any potential sources of conflict of interest. Please provide a brief statement even if there are no conficts of interest.
References:
References to literature in the main text should be made by author and year. If there are two authors, both should be named, if there are three or more only the first author's name is given followed by "et al." (e.g. Ellerbroek, 2019; Thierfelder and Braun, 2019; Ingenhoff et al., 2020). If the author is mentioned in the text, her/his name has to be followed by the year of publication in brackets. All literature cited in the article has to be included in the References section and vice versa. Responsibility for the accuracy of bibliographic references rests entirely with the author(s). References should be given as follows:
- Articles in journals:
Ingenhoff JE, Mühlemann M, Ackermann-Gäumann R, Moor D, Berger T (2020): Tick-borne encephalitis virus transmission via milk and milk products. J Food Saf Food Qual 71:110–114.
- Chapters in books:
Fredriksson-Ahomaa M (2007): Yersinia enterocolitica and Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. In: Simjee S (ed.), Foodborne disease. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ, USA, 79–113.
- Books:
Rood JI, McClane BA, Songer JG, Titball RW (1997): The clostridia: molecular biology and pathogenesis. Academic Press, San Diego, CA, USA.
- Dissertation:
Unnerstad H (2001): Listeria monocytogenes – strain diversity demonstrated by genotyping. Uppsala, Sweden, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, diss.
- Conference proceedings:
Baggesen DL,Wingstrand A, Thomsen LK, McFadden C, Nielsen B (1997): Salmonella contamination of carcasses from “Salmonella high risk pig herds“ and documentation of cross-contamination at abattoirs by use of epidemiological markers. Proceedings of the International Symposium Salmonella and Salmonellosis, Ploufragan, France 1997, 321–324.
Tables and Figures:
Figures and Tables should be presented in the manuscript file with their legends and should be embedded in a relevant position in the main body of the manuscript, following their first mention. In the course of the review process, original figure files also need to be sent as separate files (.tif or .jpeg). All figures must be of high enough resolution to be clearly legible. Tables should be created directly in the word processing software as editable tables and not be inserted into the manuscript as images. All Figures and Tables need to be referenced in the main text (e.g. Fig. 2, Table 1). Titles and legends should provide enough details for the figure or table to be understood without reference to the main text.
Editorial Process
Manuscripts should be submitted via the online submission system. The manuscript has not been published previously and is not currently submitted to another journal. The Editorial Board of the Journal of Food Safety and Food Quality comprises experts in their respective fields and oversees a publication process that involves a double-blind peer review, ensuring rigorous and impartial assessments that adhere to the journal standards. The process follows these phases:
Phase 1: Initial Check
The Editor-in-Chief initially validates that the article meets basic quality standards and is free of any obvious objective errors. If it is determined that the Editor-in-Chief or Editorial Board may have any potential conflicts of interest or cannot conduct the peer review in a timely manner, the Editor-in-Chief may request support from the Editorial Board. Together, they can assign a specific new Editorial Board to review the article.
Phase 2: Peer Review and Double-Blind Process
Manuscripts that pass Phase 1 are forwarded to reviewers with expertise in the article’s topic for a double-blind peer review. If a conflict of interest arises, the Editorial may assign a new reviewer to assess the article.
Phase 3: Acceptance or Rejection of the Manuscript
Based on the reports provided by reviewers, the Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board will evaluate the feedback from the reviewer and inform the authors of the required modifications to address the reviewers' comments. The author will make the necessary amendments based on the suggestions. If the article does not meet sufficient quality standards, the Editorial Board will consider the article withdrawn.
In case of disputes between authors and reviewers, the Editorial Board and the Author Advocate may initiate an arbitration process to ensure a constructive review phase that supports the ethics of both the journal and the author.
Phase 4: Editorial Review after Scientific Acceptance
Once the article is accepted by the Editorial Board, the editorial office reviews the formal aspects of the work, as described in the section Presentation and Structure of the Text according to Journal of Food Safety and Food Quality. A manuscript may be returned to the authors if it does not meet the submission standards; the editorial office will be responsible for its approval for publication. The author will submit a revised version of the article that complies with the journal's standards. If the revised version is not received in due time and form, the editorial office, with validation from the Editor-in-Chief, will consider the manuscript withdrawn.
Once validated, the articles undergo a spelling and style check that authors may review in the galley-proof phase.
Phase 5: Galley-Proof and Publication
The editorial office will send the galley proofs to the corresponding author for a final review before publication. The author can approve the proofs or suggest necessary changes.
This review must be completed within 3 to 5 calendar days, as any delay in returning the proofs could postpone the article's publication. No structural changes are accepted for already approved manuscripts.
The editorial office will publish the article at the website, and also in PDF format for complete download.
Phase 6: Post-Publication Quality Control
Journal of Food Safety and Food Quality adheres to a strict protocol for monitoring, amending, and rectifying published articles if the community raises and validates serious concerns that warrant retraction, including those related to ethical issues, honest errors, or scientific misconduct. Any potential issues should be reported to the editorial office, with a detailed submission specifying the volume, issue number, article title, and the observations or concerns being raised.