Impact of IFR’s scientists revealed

15 Jan 2009

The Institute of Food Research has been ranked second in the world for the impact of its research in the area of agricultural and food sciences, according to an independent survey of published research papers over the last ten years.

Data taken from the Thomson Reuters’ Essential Science Indicators database, and published recently in Times Higher Education, looked at the average number of times IFR’s research papers were cited in other studies, to measure the impact these papers have had on the worldwide scientific community. 

“We are delighted that the impact of IFR’s research has been recognised in this way,” commented Professor David White, director of the Institute.  “Whilst it is always difficult to measure scientific output, it is very encouraging to learn that our research is having such an influence and is seen as significant by other scientists worldwide”

IFR published 471 original research papers in the broad area of agricultural sciences, which includes food science, food chemistry and nutrition during 1998-2008.  These were cited almost 7,000 times by other researchers, and the average of 14.68 citations per paper puts IFR second out of over 39,000 institutions reviewed.  The list was headed by Tufts University in the US, with IFR the highest ranked European institution, ahead of other prestigious institutions such as Wageningen University in the Netherlands (12th) and INRA in France (9th).  The only other UK-based organisation in the top 20 was the University of reading (8th).

IFR is an institute of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, and is based on the Norwich Research Park.  It undertakes scientific research relevant to food and human health, the outcomes of which feed into national and international strategies, delivering advice and solutions for the UK Government, public sector bodies, regulatory authorities, industry and consumers.

Contacts:

Andrew Chapple, Press Office Assistant
Email: andrew.chapple@ifr.ac.uk Tel: 01603 251490

Notes to editors:

• For the full list of “Top institutions in agricultural sciences based on impact”, and explanation of how the data was extracted, please see: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=404872&c=1
  
  
• The mission of the Institute of Food Research (www.ifr.ac.uk) is to undertake international quality scientific research relevant to food and human health and to work in partnership with others to provide underpinning science for consumers, policy makers, the food industry and academia. It is a company limited by guarantee, with charitable status.
  
  
• IFR is an Institute of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (www.bbsrc.ac.uk)
  
  
• Data provided by Thomson Reuters:
  
  

INSTITUTION RANKINGS IN AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES
1998-2008
BASED ON CITATIONS PER PAPER
AMONG INSTITUTIONS WITH 5,000 OR MORE CITATIONS

Rank	Institution	Papers	Citations	Citations Per Paper
1	Tufts University, USA	392	7,089	18.08
2	Institute of Food Research, UK	471	6,912	14.68
3	University of Helsinki, Finland	779	9,905	12.72
4	Cornell University, USA	1,557	17,096	10.98
5	University of Wisconsin, USA	1,428	14,326	10.03
6	University of California, Davis, USA	1,954	19,454	9.96
7	Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Denmark	1,013	9,842	9.72
8	University of Reading, UK	846	8,211	9.71
9	French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), France	3,230	31,215	9.66
10	Oregon State University, USA	725	6,985	9.63
11	Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Denmark	603	5,794	9.61
12	Wageningen University, The Netherlands	2,443	23,351	9.56
13	University College Cork, Ireland	794	7,580	9.55
14	Rutgers State University, USA	585	5,440	9.30
15	University of Massachusetts, USA	634	5,740	9.05
16	Penn State University, USA	984	8,727	8.87
17	University of Nebraska, USA	1,081	9,576	8.86
18	Michigan State University, USA	952	8,397	8.82
19	University of Illinois, USA	1,287	11,328	8.80
20	U.S. Food and Drug Administration, USA	818	7,155	8.75

 

SOURCE: Thomson Reuters’s Essential Science Indicators database, January 1, 1998 through August 31, 2008.

The data above were extracted from the Essential Science Indicators database of Thomson Reuters. This database, currently covering the period January 1998 through August 2008, surveys only journal articles (original research reports and review articles) indexed by Thomson Reuters. Articles are assigned to a category based on the journals in which they were published and Thomson Reuters’s journal-to-category field definition scheme. Both articles tabulated and citation counts to those articles are for the period indicated. Naturally, institutions publishing large numbers of papers have a greater likelihood of collecting more citations than those publishing fewer papers. This ranking is by citations per paper (impact), among those institutions that have collected 5,000 or more citations in agricultural sciences. For papers with multiple institutional addresses, each institution receives full, not fractional, citation credit. Essential Science Indicators lists institutions ranked in the top 1% for a field over a given period, based on total citations. For the current version, 394 institutions are listed in the field of agricultural sciences, meaning that a total of 39,400 institutions were reviewed to obtain these results. Of the 394, 42 institutions collected 5,000 or more citations. The ranking by citations per paper (impact) seeks to reveal “heavy-hitters” based on per paper influence, not mere output. For more information on Thomson Reuters’s Essential Science Indicators, see http://scientific.thomsonreuters.com/products/esi.