The US Department of Agriculture has made it easier for scientists and consumers to check out the nutritional characteristics of popular foods. The agency added a database of 80,000 name-brand packaged and prepared foods sold at supermarkets and restaurants to its existing almost 9,000-item National Nutrient Database.
Both databases can now be searched online at <ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb>. But this is just the beginning, according to the USDA, which ultimately plans to expand to 500,000 products and add details from the updated Nutrition Facts panel.