Challenges for the New Millennium

For almost a quarter of a century now, a specialized group of nutritionists and information scientists, mostly from the U.S.A., have gathered each year to consider advances, changes, and imminent challenges related to constructing, maintaining, and using nutrient databanks. These databases of foods, dietary components, and nutri- ents are often little-known by the research and regulatory communities whose science and statutes so often are ultimately based on their integrity and accuracy. The 24th of these National Nutrient Databank Conferences was convened in an extended format from July 27 to 29, 2000 in St. Paul, MN, and hosted by the Nutrition Coordinating Center (NCC), located in the Division of Epidemiology in the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota. tle for the conference was Challenges for the New Millennium. The scientific expansion of "newʹʹ nutrients and foods recognized as related to human health is ever growing. Similarly, the information age has brought increasingly sophisticated computer technology to matters of food policy, trade, and regulation, all with expanding demands for the quantity, quality, and accessibility of information. The intent of this conference was to examine the most up-to-date information available, and to look forward to trends that will shape the directions for those who construct, maintain, and use food and nutrient databases. de range of topics and their timeliness made it attractive to share the scientific content of the 24th Conference with a broader audience. Working with the Editors of the Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, we are pleased that a large portion of the presentations could be included in the Journal. The readership of the Journal who could not be on the banks of the Mississippi river in St. Paul those lovely summer days can now benefit from much of what was said. eople contributed to the success of the 24th Conference, and special thanks are extended to the commercial donors who provided financial support, the program committee, and the local arrangements committee. Dr Burlingame and her staff were most helpful in bringing to fruition a collection that departs from the usual editorial flow. The editorial office ensured that the papers were peer reviewed, and they greatly facilitated the whole process.