Plant & Food Research and the Ministry of Health jointly own the New Zealand Food Composition Database, the most comprehensive collection of high-quality nutrient data for New Zealand foods. The Database is managed and maintained by dedicated Plant & Food Research staff.

The New Zealand Food Composition Database's primary role is to provide reliable nutrient values for foods commonly consumed in New Zealand. It contains nutrient information for over 2,850 foods and ingredients commonly prepared and eaten in New Zealand. The majority of the data has been collated through coordinated analysis conducted by accredited laboratories in New Zealand and Australia. Data includes carbohydrate, protein, fat, cholesterol, caffeine, vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, fibre, moisture and ash.

The New Zealand Food Composition Database may be accessed as:

1. Our online Search , which allows users to search the database of over 2,850 foods and produce a tailored report
2. Data file downloads for off-line use:
   1. New Zealand FOODfiles™, which includes data for up to 434 components for over 2,850 foods, as Microsoft Office Excel or tilde delimited ASCII text files
   2. The Concise New Zealand Food Composition Tables, which are printable tables of 36 components for over 1,000 foods in PDF or Microsoft Office Excel

More technical information can be accessed by downloading the New Zealand Food Composition Database 2024 Data Manual [PDF 1.5 MB].

Updates

The New Zealand FOODfiles™ are continually reviewed and updates are released about every two years. Similarly, the Concise New Zealand Food Composition Tables are regularly revised and the data driving the online Search updated.

It is not possible or necessary to analyse all foods in New Zealand every year. Therefore, foods are prioritised for nutrient analysis in conjunction with the Ministry of Health. The following factors are considered when creating a priority food list:

• Does a similar food already exist in the database, and if so how old the data are?
• Is it a new food and, if so, is it likely to be successful in the marketplace?
• How frequently and in what amounts the is food consumed in New Zealand?
• What nutrients does the food contribute to the diet of New Zealanders?
• Does the food have a unique composition?
• Has there been a change in production practices that could significantly affect composition?
• Is there a need to replace data from overseas with New Zealand analytical values?
• User feedback.

Details of the updates appearing in FOODfiles™ 2024 can be found in the New Zealand Food Composition Database 2024 Data Manual [PDF 1.5 MB].