@pipeworx/usda-fdc

USDA Food Data Central MCP — comprehensive nutrient database for US foods (~600k items across SR Legacy, Foundation, Survey, Branded, Experimental data types).

Part of Pipeworx — an MCP gateway connecting AI agents to 1476+ live data sources.

Tools

• search_foods(query, data_type?, page_size?, page_number?, sort_by?, sort_order?, brand_owner?)

• get_food(fdc_id, format?, nutrients?) — single-food detail

• list_foods(data_type?, page_size?, page_number?, sort_by?, sort_order?) — browse

• list_food_groups() — USDA food group reference

• nutrients_for_food(fdc_id, nutrient_numbers?) — convenience: just the nutrient values

Related MCP server: Food Data Central MCP Server

Auth

• Platform key: gateway env PLATFORM_USDA_FDC_KEY

• BYO: ?_apiKey=<key> after registering at https://api.data.gov/signup/

Free tier: 1000 req/hour.

Data source

https://api.nal.usda.gov/fdc/v1/ — api_key= query param.

Quick Start

Add to your MCP client (Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, etc.):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "usda-fdc": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/usda-fdc/mcp"
    }
  }
}

What this endpoint actually serves

tools/list at https://gateway.pipeworx.io/usda-fdc/mcp returns the tools in the table above plus the shared Pipeworx meta-tools — ask_pipeworx, discover_tools, search_within, remember/recall and the rest of the gateway-wide set. So the tool count you see is larger than this table: a single-pack endpoint currently lists roughly 30 shared tools alongside the pack's own. The connection's initialize response states its exact scope, and is the authoritative answer for a given day.

This is deliberate, not multiplexing by accident. The meta-tools are what let a scoped connection answer a question this pack does not cover — via ask_pipeworx, which routes across the whole catalog — without you adding a second MCP server. There is currently no way to mount a pack endpoint without them; if the extra schemas cost you more context than the routing is worth, connect to the full gateway once rather than to several pack endpoints.

Or connect to the full Pipeworx gateway to get every pack's tools listed directly, instead of just this one's:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pipeworx": {
      "url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Both URLs reach the same gateway and the same 1476+ data sources. The only difference is which pack's tools are listed directly; ask_pipeworx reaches all of them from either one.

Using with ask_pipeworx

Instead of calling tools directly, you can ask questions in plain English — this works on the pack endpoint above as well as on the full gateway:

ask_pipeworx({ question: "your question about Usda Fdc data" })

The gateway picks the right tool and fills the arguments automatically.

More

• Docs and guides

• pipeworx.io

License

MIT

No MCP client? Call it over HTTP

curl -X POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/search_foods \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"query":"organic whole milk"}'

No account needed for the first calls. Inspect any tool: GET https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/search_foods. Find one: POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/search_packs with {"query":"..."}.