Citation and Reference Style | Food Systems, Safety & Sustainability

All manuscripts submitted to Food Systems, Safety & Sustainability (FSSS) must follow the PSG Author–Date Citation Format, the official citation and reference standard of Panorama Scholarly Group.

PSG Format uses author–date citations in the main text and a corresponding alphabetical reference list. References must not be numbered. Authors are responsible for ensuring that every source cited in the manuscript appears in the reference list and that every reference-list entry is cited in the manuscript.

The reference list must be accurate, complete, consistent, and based on sources that the authors have personally verified. Citation-management software and artificial-intelligence tools may assist with formatting, but their output must be checked manually against the original publication.

1. In-Text Citations

In-text citations should normally contain the author’s surname and the year of publication. No comma is placed between the author’s surname and the year.

Citation Type	PSG Format
One author	(Smith 2025)
Two authors	(Smith and Lee 2025)
Three authors	(Smith, Lee, and Wang 2025)
Four or more authors	(Smith et al. 2025)
Institutional author	(World Health Organization 2025)
Specific page	(Smith 2025, 42)
Page range	(Smith 2025, 42–46)
Multiple sources	(Chen 2021; Kim 2023; Smith 2025)
Same author, different years	(Smith 2021, 2023, 2025)
Same author and same year	(Smith 2025a, 2025b)
No publication date	(Smith n.d.)

Narrative Citations

When the author’s name forms part of the sentence, only the publication year and any relevant locator should appear in parentheses.

Examples:

Smith (2025) examined the relationship between supply-chain transparency and consumer trust.

Smith and Lee (2025) identified traceability as an important component of food-safety governance.

Smith, Lee, and Wang (2025) reported substantial variation across regional food systems.

Smith et al. (2025) demonstrated that cold-chain interruptions increased microbial risk.

Smith (2025, 42–46) further discussed the regulatory implications of these findings.

Parenthetical Citations

When the author’s name does not form part of the sentence, the surname and year should appear together in parentheses.

Example:

Digital traceability can improve the visibility and accountability of food supply chains (Smith and Lee 2025).

Multiple Sources in One Citation

Multiple sources cited within one set of parentheses should be separated by semicolons. They should normally be arranged alphabetically by the surname of the first author or by the name of the responsible organisation.

Example:

Food-system resilience has been examined from environmental, economic, and public-health perspectives (Chen 2021; Kim 2023; Smith et al. 2025).

Multiple Works by the Same Author

When citing more than one work by the same author, repeat only the years and arrange them chronologically.

Example:

(Smith 2020, 2022, 2025)

When the works were published in the same year, add lowercase letters to the year. The letters must correspond to those used in the reference list.

Example:

(Smith 2025a, 2025b)

Direct Quotations

Direct quotations must include a page number or another sufficiently precise location indicator.

Examples:

Smith (2025, 42) described traceability as “a central institutional mechanism for food-system accountability.”

Traceability has been described as “a central institutional mechanism for food-system accountability” (Smith 2025, 42).

For a quotation extending across more than one page, use an en dash:

(Smith 2025, 42–44)

Direct quotations should be used selectively. Authors should normally interpret, synthesise, and critically analyse the literature rather than reproducing extended passages.

Sources without Page Numbers

Where a source does not include stable page numbers, authors should provide another appropriate locator where possible, such as a paragraph, section, table, figure, chapter, or timestamp.

Examples:

(World Health Organization 2025, para. 8)
(European Commission 2024, sec. 3.2)
(Smith 2025, table 4)
(Lee 2024, chap. 6)
(Food and Agriculture Organization 2025, 12:45)

Institutional and Group Authors

Government agencies, international organisations, research institutions, professional associations, and other corporate bodies may be treated as authors.

First citation:

(Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 2025)

An abbreviation may be introduced where the organisation is cited repeatedly:

(Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations [FAO] 2025)

Subsequent citations may then use:

(FAO 2025)

The full institutional name should remain the author name in the reference list.

Sources without an Identified Author

Where no personal or institutional author can be identified, use a shortened form of the title in place of the author name. Article and webpage titles should appear in quotation marks, while book and report titles should appear in italics.

Examples:

(“Global Food Safety Trends” 2025)
(Annual Review of Sustainable Agriculture 2024)

Authors should not use “Anonymous” unless the work itself explicitly identifies the author as Anonymous.

Sources without a Publication Date

Use n.d. where no publication or revision date can be identified.

Example:

(Panorama Scholarly Group n.d.)

Secondary Citations

Authors should consult and cite the original source wherever possible. A secondary citation may be used only where the original source is genuinely inaccessible.

Example:

Smith’s early model of food-system resilience (1998, cited in Lee 2025, 64) distinguished between absorptive and adaptive capacity.

Only the source actually consulted—in this example, Lee 2025—should appear in the reference list.

Personal Communications

Emails, private correspondence, unpublished interviews, telephone conversations, and other personal communications that are not recoverable by readers should normally be cited in the text only and omitted from the reference list.

Example:

(Maria Chen, personal communication, March 12, 2025)

Authors must obtain permission from the individual concerned before citing a personal communication.

2. Reference-List Organisation

Place the reference list at the end of the manuscript under the heading References.
Arrange entries alphabetically by the surname of the first author or by the name of the responsible organisation.
Do not number reference-list entries.
For multiple works by the same author or author group, arrange entries chronologically from the earliest to the latest publication.
For multiple works by the same author or author group in the same year, add lowercase letters to the year, such as 2025a and 2025b.
Every in-text citation must have a corresponding reference-list entry.
Every reference-list entry must be cited in the manuscript.
Authors should use a hanging indent in the final manuscript where technically possible.
References should be presented as one continuous alphabetical list and should not normally be divided by source type.

3. Fixed PSG Formatting Rules

The publication year appears immediately after the author information and is not enclosed in brackets.
The first author’s name is inverted: surname first, followed by the given name.
The names of subsequent authors appear in natural order: given name followed by surname.
Use and before the final author’s name; do not use an ampersand.
Author names should be presented as fully as they appear in the original publication.
Do not use et al. in the reference list merely because it was used in the corresponding in-text citation.
English article, chapter, webpage, and report-section titles appear in typographic quotation marks: “ ”.
The period following an article or chapter title appears inside the closing quotation mark.
Journal names, book titles, report titles, dataset titles, and standalone works are italicised.
English titles should use headline-style capitalisation.
Volume and issue information follows the form 12, no. 2.
Page ranges use an en dash, for example 45–63.
Where an article uses an article number rather than a page range, use the form Article 108.
DOIs must be presented as complete links beginning with https://doi.org/.
Do not write a DOI in the form doi:10.xxxx/xxxxx.
Do not place a full stop after a DOI, URL, handle, accession number, or other terminal electronic identifier.
URLs should link directly to the cited resource rather than to a general homepage where possible.
Multilingual titles should retain the original-language title followed by an English translation in square brackets.
Preprints, datasets, software, standards, working papers, and AI tools must be identified clearly by resource type.
Online resources should include an access date where the content is undated, frequently updated, or liable to change.

4. Journal Article

Format:

Last, First, First Last, and First Last. Year. “Article Title.” Journal Name volume, no. issue: page range. DOI

Example:

Smith, John A., Helen K. Lee, and Ming Wang. 2025. “Traceability and Risk Governance in Global Food Supply Chains.” Journal of Food Systems Research 12, no. 2: 45–63. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Smith, Lee, and Wang 2025)

5. Journal Article with Four or More Authors

Example:

Chen, Li, Sungho Park, Maria López, Ahmed Hassan, and Julia Weber. 2025. “Climate-Resilient Cold Chains and Microbial Risk Reduction.” Food Safety and Sustainability 8, no. 3: 211–229. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Chen et al. 2025)

6. Journal Article with an Article Number

Format:

Last, First, and First Last. Year. “Article Title.” Journal Name volume, no. issue: Article number. DOI

Example:

Chen, Li, and Sungho Park. 2024. “Digital Traceability and Consumer Confidence in Sustainable Food Markets.” Food Policy and Technology 35, no. 2: Article 108. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Chen and Park 2024)

7. Online-First or Advance Publication Article

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Article Title.” Journal Name. Advance online publication. DOI

Example:

Weber, Julia. 2025. “Circular Food-System Strategies for Urban Regions.” International Journal of Sustainable Food Systems. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Weber 2025)

Once complete volume, issue, page, or article-number information becomes available, authors should update the reference before final publication.

8. Book

Format:

Last, First. Year. Book Title: Subtitle. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example:

Lang, Tim. 2020. Feeding Britain: Our Food Problems and How to Fix Them. London: Pelican.

In-text citation: (Lang 2020)

9. Book with Two or More Authors

Example:

Smith, John A., and Maria López. 2024. Governing Sustainable Food Systems. Berlin: Academic Food Press.

In-text citation: (Smith and López 2024)

10. Edition Other Than the First

Format:

Last, First. Year. Book Title. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example:

Brown, Robert. 2023. Principles of Food Safety Management. 3rd ed. New York: Scientific Press.

In-text citation: (Brown 2023)

11. Edited Book

Format:

Last, First, and First Last, eds. Year. Book Title. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example:

Lee, Helen K., and Ahmed Hassan, eds. 2024. Food-System Transformation in Asia and Europe. Singapore: Springer.

In-text citation: (Lee and Hassan 2024)

12. Chapter in an Edited Book

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by First Last and First Last, page range. Place of publication: Publisher. DOI

Example:

Lee, Hyun K. 2024. “Digital Technologies in Food-Safety Governance.” In Transforming Global Food Systems, edited by John Smith and Robert Brown, 55–78. Singapore: Springer. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Lee 2024, 60)

13. Government or Institutional Report

Format:

Author or Organisation. Year. Report Title. Place of publication: Publisher or Organisation. DOI or URL

Example:

Food Safety Authority. 2025. Annual Report on National Foodborne Disease Surveillance. Berlin: Food Safety Authority. https://example.org/food-safety-report

In-text citation: (Food Safety Authority 2025)

Where the author and publisher are the same organisation, the organisation may appear in both positions where required for clarity and institutional identification.

14. Report with an Individual Author

Example:

Hassan, Ahmed. 2024. Strengthening Food Supply-Chain Resilience in Emerging Economies. Rome: International Food Policy Institute. https://example.org/report

In-text citation: (Hassan 2024)

15. Webpage

Format:

Author or Organisation. Year. “Title of Webpage.” Accessed Month Day, Year. URL

Example:

Panorama Scholarly Group. 2026. “Publication Ethics.” Accessed August 5, 2026. https://panorama-sg.com/publication-ethics

In-text citation: (Panorama Scholarly Group 2026)

Where a clear publication or revision date is available, use that year. Where no date can be identified, use n.d. and retain the access date.

Undated example:

Panorama Scholarly Group. n.d. “Open-Access Publishing.” Accessed August 5, 2026. https://panorama-sg.com/open-access

In-text citation: (Panorama Scholarly Group n.d.)

16. Online News or Magazine Article

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Article Title.” Publication Name, Month Day. URL

Example:

Weber, Julia. 2025. “European Cities Expand Local Food Procurement Programmes.” Global Food Review, September 18. https://example.org/local-food-procurement

In-text citation: (Weber 2025)

17. Conference Paper Published in Proceedings

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Paper Title.” In Title of Proceedings, edited by First Last, page range. Place of publication: Publisher. DOI or URL

Example:

Park, Sungho. 2024. “Machine Learning for Early Detection of Food-Supply Disruptions.” In Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Food Systems, edited by Maria López, 112–124. Berlin: Global Food Research Press. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Park 2024)

18. Unpublished Conference Presentation

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Presentation Title.” Paper presented at Conference Name, City, Country, Month Day–Day.

Example:

Chen, Li. 2025. “Blockchain Traceability in Regional Food Networks.” Paper presented at the International Food Systems Conference, Copenhagen, Denmark, June 10–12.

In-text citation: (Chen 2025)

19. Thesis or Dissertation

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Title.” Degree thesis or dissertation, Institution. Repository or database. URL

Example:

Weber, Julia. 2024. “Governance Pathways for Climate-Resilient Urban Food Systems.” PhD dissertation, Humboldt University of Berlin. Institutional Repository. https://example.org/dissertation

In-text citation: (Weber 2024)

20. Preprint

Format:

Last, First, and First Last. Year. “Title.” Preprint, Repository. DOI or URL

Example:

Smith, John A., and Helen K. Lee. 2025. “Predicting Climate-Related Food Supply Disruptions.” Preprint, arXiv. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Smith and Lee 2025)

Authors must identify preprints clearly and should replace a preprint reference with the final peer-reviewed Version of Record where one becomes available before publication.

21. Working Paper

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Working Paper Title.” Working Paper number, Institution. URL

Example:

Hassan, Ahmed. 2024. “Food-Price Volatility and Household Nutrition Security.” Working Paper 47, Institute for Sustainable Food Economics. https://example.org/working-paper-47

In-text citation: (Hassan 2024)

22. Dataset

Format:

Last, First, and First Last. Year. Dataset Title. Data set. Repository. Version, where applicable. DOI or persistent identifier

Example:

Lee, Sungho. 2025. Survey Data on Sustainable Food Consumption in South Korea. Data set. Zenodo. Version 2. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Lee 2025)

23. Software or Source-Code Repository

Format:

Last, First, or Organisation. Year. Software Title. Software or source code. Version. Repository. DOI or URL

Example:

Chen, Li. 2025. Food Supply-Chain Risk Analyser. Source code. Version 1.3. GitHub. https://github.com/example/food-risk-analyser

In-text citation: (Chen 2025)

Where available, authors should identify the software version, release date, repository, DOI, archived release, or commit identifier used in the research.

24. Artificial-Intelligence Tool

Format:

Organisation or Developer. Year. Name of Tool. Version or model, where available. Resource type. URL

Example:

OpenAI. 2026. ChatGPT. Large language model. https://chat.openai.com/

In-text citation: (OpenAI 2026)

Citing an artificial-intelligence tool does not replace the requirement to disclose how it was used. Authors must also provide an AI-use declaration identifying the tool, version, purpose, affected stages of the work, and procedures used to review and verify its output.

25. Technical Standard or Guideline

Format:

Organisation. Year. Title of Standard. Standard number. Place of publication: Organisation. URL

Example:

International Organization for Standardization. 2018. Food Safety Management Systems—Requirements for Any Organization in the Food Chain. ISO 22000:2018. Geneva: International Organization for Standardization. https://example.org/iso-22000

In-text citation: (International Organization for Standardization 2018)

26. Law, Regulation, or Official Legal Instrument

Format:

Jurisdiction or Issuing Authority. Year. Title of Law or Regulation. Official number or identifier. Date adopted or published, where relevant. URL

Example:

European Union. 2002. Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 Laying Down the General Principles and Requirements of Food Law. Official Journal of the European Communities L 31. https://example.eu/regulation-178-2002

In-text citation: (European Union 2002)

Authors working extensively with legal materials may adapt the entry to the citation conventions of the relevant jurisdiction, provided that the citation remains complete, consistent, and readily verifiable.

27. Patent

Format:

Last, First, and First Last. Year. “Patent Title.” Country or authority patent number, filed or issued Month Day, Year.

Example:

Smith, John A., and Maria López. 2024. “Biodegradable Antimicrobial Packaging for Fresh Food Products.” European Patent EP1234567, issued October 15, 2024.

In-text citation: (Smith and López 2024)

28. Multilingual and Non-English Sources

Sources published in languages other than English should retain the original-language title. An English translation should follow immediately in square brackets.

Journal names and book titles should also include an English translation in square brackets where this improves identification and accessibility.

Titles written in non-Latin scripts should remain in the original script where technically possible. Author names should be romanised according to an established system appropriate to the language.

Chinese-Language Source

Chinese author names should normally be romanised in Pinyin.

Example:

Wang, Ming, and Hua Li. 2024. “食品供应链数字化与安全治理 [Digitalisation and Safety Governance in Food Supply Chains].” 食品科学研究 [Food Science Research] 15, no. 2: 45–58. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Wang and Li 2024)

Korean-Language Source

Example:

Kim, Minsoo. 2024. “지속가능한 식품 시스템과 지역 거버넌스 [Sustainable Food Systems and Regional Governance].” 한국식품정책연구 [Korean Journal of Food Policy] 18, no. 1: 101–125. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Kim 2024)

German-Language Source

Example:

Weber, Julia. 2024. “Nachhaltige Ernährungssysteme und kommunale Governance [Sustainable Food Systems and Municipal Governance].” Zeitschrift für Ernährungsforschung [Journal of Nutrition Research] 22, no. 3: 144–162. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

In-text citation: (Weber 2024)

29. Forthcoming and In-Press Works

A work formally accepted for publication but not yet published may be identified as forthcoming.

Example:

Lee, Helen K. Forthcoming. “Risk Communication in Digitally Connected Food Systems.” Journal of Food Governance.

In-text citation: (Lee, forthcoming)

Manuscripts that have merely been submitted, are under review, or have not received formal acceptance should not be described as forthcoming. They may be cited as unpublished manuscripts only where academically necessary.

30. Unpublished Manuscript

Format:

Last, First. Year. “Title.” Unpublished manuscript, Institution, where applicable.

Example:

Smith, John A. 2025. “Community-Based Models of Food-Waste Redistribution.” Unpublished manuscript, Institute for Sustainable Food Studies.

In-text citation: (Smith 2025)

31. Retracted, Corrected, or Updated Publications

Authors must check whether cited publications have been corrected, withdrawn, or retracted.

A corrected article should be cited in its corrected form where possible.
A retracted publication must not be cited as reliable evidence unless the retraction itself is the subject of discussion.
Where a retracted article is discussed, the reference should clearly identify its retracted status.
Authors should cite correction notices, retraction notices, or expressions of concern where these are directly relevant.

Example:

Smith, John A. 2022. “Food-Safety Monitoring through Automated Inspection.” Journal of Food Technology 14, no. 2: 88–102. Retracted. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

32. Reference Integrity

Authors are responsible for the completeness, accuracy, relevance, and integrity of every citation and reference. Before submission, authors must:

verify every reference against the original source;
confirm that each cited source exists;
confirm that the source supports the statement for which it is cited;
check the spelling and order of all author names;
check publication titles, years, editions, journal names, volume and issue numbers, page ranges, and article numbers;
open and verify every DOI, URL, accession number, and persistent identifier;
remove duplicate references;
ensure that all in-text citations correspond exactly to the reference list;
identify preprints, datasets, software, standards, working papers, and AI tools using the correct resource type;
check whether cited publications have been corrected, withdrawn, or retracted;
avoid inappropriate, irrelevant, excessive, or manipulative citation practices;
avoid unnecessary self-citation and citation stacking;
manually verify references produced by citation-management software or AI-assisted systems; and
remove fabricated, unverifiable, incomplete, or non-existent references.

33. Use of Citation-Management Software

Authors may use reference-management software to organise citations and references. However, automated styles may not reproduce PSG Format accurately in every case.

Before submission, authors should:

convert or edit the output to comply with PSG punctuation and author-name rules;
check that article and chapter titles use typographic quotation marks;
check that journal and book titles are italicised;
check that issue numbers use the form no.;
check that DOIs appear as complete HTTPS links;
remove field-code errors, duplicate entries, and incomplete metadata; and
verify every entry against the original source.

34. Official PSG Resources

The complete PSG Format specification and the official PSG Citation Generator are available through the Panorama Open Scholarly Index.

The citation generator is a formatting aid. Authors remain responsible for checking the existence, accuracy, relevance, and completeness of every generated reference.

35. Final Reference Check

Before submitting the manuscript, authors should confirm that:

the reference list is alphabetical and unnumbered;
every in-text citation appears in the reference list;
every reference-list entry is cited in the manuscript;
three-author works are cited using all three surnames in the text;
works with four or more authors use the first author’s surname followed by et al. in the text;
the first author’s name is inverted in each reference-list entry;
subsequent authors’ names appear in natural order;
and, rather than an ampersand, appears before the final author;
article and chapter titles appear in quotation marks;
journal names and book titles are italicised;
page ranges use an en dash;
DOIs are formatted as complete links;
no full stop appears after a DOI or URL;
non-English titles include an English translation in square brackets;
preprints, datasets, software, standards, and AI tools are identified correctly;
all links and identifiers have been tested;
retracted or corrected literature has been identified appropriately; and
all references have been checked against the original sources.

Manuscripts containing incomplete, inconsistent, unverifiable, or incorrectly formatted references may be returned to the authors for technical revision before editorial assessment or publication.