Check the Setup
- Python 3.10 or newer
- A notebook environment such as Jupyter or Google Colab
- An internet connection
Microproduct Data GuideBeginner
Open Food Facts
Collaborative packaged-food product records for building barcode lookup, label, and nutrition-comparison tools.
Report a ProblemAt a Glance
- Difficulty
- Beginner — comfortable for a first prototype
- Size
- Large · 0.1–20 GB
- Formats
- JSON, CSV
- Access
- API or Download
- API Key
- Not Required
- Provider
- Open Food Facts
- Updates
- Continuous
- Last Verified
- Aug 18, 2026
- Source Type
- Nonprofit Source
- Data Terms
- Open Database License
- Python Syntax Checked
- Runnable Notebook
From Source to Product Signal
Test a Product Idea in Four Steps
Open Food Facts publishes packaged-product facts, including Nutri-Score and ingredient lists, under ODbL. Start with one barcode and a custom User-Agent. Contributor data can be incomplete, images have a separate share-alike licence, and the database is not medical advice.
Access the Data
- 1.Read the terms of use, including attribution and share-alike for derivative databases.
- 2.Request one product by barcode with a descriptive User-Agent.
- 3.Keep the barcode, product name, and Nutri-Score if present.
3
Run the Python Example
Install the packages, then run the notebook cell.
python -m pip install pandas requests
import pandas as pd
import requests
response = requests.get(
"https://world.openfoodfacts.org/api/v2/product/737628064502.json",
headers={
"User-Agent": (
"TrilemmaDataCatalogExample/1.0 "
"(https://data.trilemma.foundation)"
)
},
timeout=30,
)
response.raise_for_status()
product = pd.json_normalize(response.json()["product"])
print(product.filter(regex="code|product_name|nutriscore|brands").head())4
Test a Useful Signal
Look Up One Packaged Food by Barcode
Test whether Open Food Facts can power a bounded product-fact card.
- 01Keep barcode, product name, brands, and Nutri-Score.
- 02Record missing nutrition or ingredient fields instead of filling them from other sites.
- 03Attribute Open Food Facts under ODbL and note that images and third-party packaging rights are separate.
Dataset Details
Open Food Facts is a nonprofit source. Last verified 2026-08-18. Temporal coverage: continuously updated product records.
Data Types
Geography
Provider
Open Food Facts
Data Terms
Open Database License