Editorial board changes

As I have noted in the past, 2024 and now the start to 2025 have seen impressive increases in the number of manuscript submissions. Last year, we saw a record number of submissions, topping 3000 for the first time ever (final count, 3005), an increase of 55% over 2023. This year to date, our numbers have increased even further, with more than 500 new manuscripts already by mid-February. In February, we received 10 new manuscripts per day, an astonishing number. Our average in 2024 was eight submissions per day, suggesting we are on track for another record year of submissions.

To keep up with this increase, we have brought on new editors at all levels, adding a total of 10 new people, with several more moving up the ranks. This gave us the opportunity to shore up specific needs on our board while also addressing the call for greater global diversification. My March and April editorials from last year summarize the process by which we select new members. This year followed that script perfectly.

We added one new Scientific Editor (SE), Dr. Nagendra Shah, to assist with manuscripts in the areas of Food Chemistry and Health and Nutrition. Dr. Shah has been an Associate Editor (AE) since 2010. He recently retired from Hong Kong University and now resides in Australia, adding to our international presence. His addition brings us to a total of 12 SEs, plus myself (I handle quite a few Concise Reviews each year as SE).

To the AE list, we have added numerous people recently. In September of 2024, we added five new AEs to help with the rapid increase in submissions. These people were promoted from the Editorial Board (EB) members-at-large based on our areas of need and their performance as an EB member. We promoted two new AEs this past January from the Editorial Board group, again to shore up expertise areas of need. These additions bring us up to 40 AEs.

First preference for internal promotion from the EB to the AE role is given to those who are recommended by an SE or AE to recognize their contributions at the EB level. We solicit these candidates from SEs specifically when they claim a need for more AEs to cover the workload in their topic. We also evaluate past performance as EB members and/or reviewers. AEs rate the quality and timeliness of each review that is submitted, helping us identity candidates who continually submit outstanding reviews within a reasonable time frame.

As we move EB members up to the AE role, we then have openings for that group. This year, we added 10 new members-at-large to the EB role. Identifying and inviting these people is quite a challenge every year since we have well over 100 names for consideration, and we generally appoint only a few new people.

The people we include for consideration were nominated to the EB in a variety of ways. We have a web link where anyone can self-nominate. Our SEs and AEs may recommend potential candidates. Further, we scour the reviewer database for potential candidates to provide expertise in specific areas of need. It is a complicated and daunting process to select from so much international expertise. To be honest, I often feel overwhelmed by the decisions, worrying that I am not including exceptional candidates. I continue to evaluate ways to improve the process, to make it more comprehensive and fair.

With these changes, we have become more of an international editorial group, a point of emphasis recommended by our recent strategic planning exercise. We added new members from Japan, Switzerland, Turkey, Finland, Egypt, Italy, Mexico, and China (three people). Our gender diversity remained the same, with 37% of the board being women.

Let me wrap this up with a huge thank you to our entire group of editors, across all levels and experience. Thanks to all of you for efforts for the Journal of Food Science. It is greatly appreciated. Let's make 2025 an even better year.

Sincerely,

Rich Hartel, PhD

Editor in Chief, Journal of

Food Science

Professor, University of

Wisconsin–Madison