Which culture media do FDA BAM chapters use?
The FDA Bacteriological Analytical Manual (BAM) is the reference for FDA regulatory microbiology and for most US food laboratories working under 21 CFR, FSMA preventive controls and customer specifications. Each chapter lists its media in a "Media and reagents" section, and the formulations are the classic ones: lauryl tryptose broth, BGLB, EC, XLD, Baird-Parker, MYP, TCBS, TSC and so on. Because BAM specifies formulations rather than brands, any manufacturer producing the formulation to specification can supply them.
This cross-reference lists the media each commonly used BAM chapter calls for and the matching STBIO product. STBIO manufactures dehydrated culture media in its own ISO 22000 certified plant in New Taipei, Taiwan, from food-grade raw materials, with a COA and cultural response data for every batch. For US laboratories the practical use is second-source qualification: the second-source qualification page describes the parallel comparison, and the brand cross-reference lists BD Difco, Oxoid and Merck equivalents with catalog numbers.
Three points before the tables:
- BAM specifies methods and formulations, not brands. No medium is "FDA approved". Verify performance against reference strains under your quality system (ISO 11133 is the usual framework) before adopting a new supplier.
- "Base" means the chapter adds something. Baird-Parker needs egg yolk tellurite, MYP needs egg yolk and polymyxin, Oxford and MOX are built on Columbia blood agar base with supplements. The tables match the base medium only.
- Follow the current online edition. BAM chapters are revised individually; the edition date is on each chapter page at fda.gov.
Every product page carries an "FDA BAM methods" block naming the chapter and the step the medium belongs to, and each chapter has its own product list under Find media by standard method.
Chapter 3: Aerobic Plate Count
Serial dilution in Butterfield's phosphate-buffered dilution water, pour plate on Plate Count Agar at 35 °C for 48 ± 2 h, count plates with 25 to 250 colonies.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Count plate | Plate count agar (PCA) | Plate Count Agar, Halal Plate Count Agar H |
Chapter 4: Enumeration of Escherichia coli and the Coliform Bacteria
MPN: LST presumptive, BGLB confirmation for coliforms, EC broth at 45.5 °C for fecal coliforms, L-EMB isolation and IMViC identification of E. coli. The solid medium method counts coliforms on VRBA.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Presumptive | Lauryl tryptose (LST) broth | Lauryl Tryptose Broth, Halal Lauryl Tryptose Broth H |
| Coliform confirmation | Brilliant green lactose bile broth, 2% (BGLB) | Brilliant Green Bile Broth 2% |
| Fecal coliform / E. coli | EC broth (45.5 °C) | EC Broth, Halal EC Broth H |
| Isolation | Levine's eosin-methylene blue (L-EMB) agar | EMB Agar, Levine |
| Coliform count, solid medium | Violet red bile agar (VRBA) | Violet Red Bile Agar |
| Purification | Plate count agar slants | Plate Count Agar |
| Indole | Tryptone (tryptophane) broth | Tryptone |
| Methyl red, VP | MR-VP broth | MR-VP Medium |
| Citrate | Koser's citrate broth | Koser Citrate Medium |
Chapter 5: Salmonella
Pre-enrichment in lactose broth, BPW or universal pre-enrichment broth depending on the food, selective enrichment in RV and TT broths, isolation on XLD, HE and BS agars, confirmation on TSI and LIA slants and biochemical tests, then serology.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-enrichment | Lactose broth | Lactose Broth |
| Pre-enrichment | Buffered peptone water (specified foods) | Buffered Peptone Water H |
| Isolation | Xylose lysine desoxycholate (XLD) agar | Xylose Lysine Deoxycholate Agar |
| Isolation | Hektoen enteric (HE) agar | Hektoen Enteric Agar |
| Presumptive confirmation | Triple sugar iron (TSI) agar | Triple Sugar Iron Agar |
| Biochemical | Simmons citrate agar | Simmons Citrate Agar |
| Biochemical | MacConkey agar | MacConkey Agar |
| Biochemical | Phenol red carbohydrate broth (base) | Phenol Red Broth Base |
| Culture and serology | Nutrient broth, BHI broth, trypticase soy broth | Nutrient Broth, Brain Heart Infusion Broth, Tryptic Soy Broth |
RV and TT broths, bismuth sulfite agar and lysine iron agar are not currently in the STBIO range. STBIO's MKTTn is the ISO 6579-1 tetrathionate formulation, not the BAM TT broth.
Chapter 10: Listeria monocytogenes
Enrichment in BLEB with selective supplements added after 4 h, isolation on OXA, PALCAM, MOX and a chromogenic agar, purification on TSAYE and TSBYE, biochemical or molecular confirmation.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Enrichment (base) | Buffered Listeria enrichment broth (BLEB) | Buffered Listeria Enrichment Broth Base |
| Isolation (base) | PALCAM agar | PALCAM Agar Base |
| Isolation (base) | Columbia blood agar base for Oxford (OXA) and modified Oxford (MOX) | Columbia Agar Base |
| Purification | TSAYE, TSBYE (TSA and TSB with 0.6% yeast extract) | Tryptic Soy Agar, Tryptic Soy Broth |
| Biochemical | MR-VP broth | MR-VP Medium |
Chapter 12: Staphylococcus aureus
Direct plating on Baird-Parker agar, or MPN in trypticase soy broth with 10% NaCl and 1% sodium pyruvate; suspect colonies grown in BHI and confirmed by the coagulase test.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Count plate (base) | Baird-Parker agar, egg yolk tellurite added | Baird Parker Agar Base, Halal Baird Parker Agar Base H |
| MPN (base) | Trypticase soy broth with 10% NaCl and 1% sodium pyruvate | Tryptic Soy Broth |
| Coagulase test | Brain heart infusion (BHI) broth | Brain Heart Infusion Broth |
| Purification | Trypticase soy agar (TSA) | Tryptic Soy Agar |
Chapter 14: Bacillus cereus
Spread plating on MYP agar or MPN in trypticase soy-polymyxin broth, purification on nutrient agar and biochemical confirmation.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Count plate (base) | Mannitol-egg yolk-polymyxin (MYP) agar | MYP Agar Base |
| MPN (base) | Trypticase soy-polymyxin broth | Tryptic Soy Broth |
| Purification | Nutrient agar, nutrient broth | Nutrient Agar, Nutrient Broth |
| Biochemical | Phenol red glucose broth (base) | Phenol Red Broth Base |
Chapter 9: Vibrio
Enrichment in alkaline peptone water, isolation on TCBS, confirmation on salt-supplemented TSA and TSB, TSI and biochemical tests for V. parahaemolyticus, V. cholerae and V. vulnificus.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Enrichment | Alkaline peptone water (APW) | Alkaline Peptone Water |
| Isolation | Thiosulfate-citrate-bile salts-sucrose (TCBS) agar | TCBS Agar |
| Confirmation | Triple sugar iron (TSI) agar | Triple Sugar Iron Agar |
| Confirmation (base) | TSA and TSB with 2% or 3% NaCl | Tryptic Soy Agar, Tryptic Soy Broth |
Chapter 16: Clostridium perfringens
Anaerobic count on TSC agar, growth in fluid thioglycollate medium, confirmation in buffered motility-nitrate and lactose-gelatin media.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Count plate | Tryptose-sulfite-cycloserine (TSC) agar | Tryptose Sulfite Cycloserine Agar |
| Growth | Fluid thioglycollate medium (FTG) | Fluid Thioglycollate Medium |
| Confirmation | Motility-nitrate medium, buffered | Motility Nitrate Medium, Buffered |
Chapter 18: Yeasts, Molds, and Mycotoxins
Serial dilution in 0.1% peptone water, spread plating on DRBC, DG18 or potato dextrose agar at 25 °C for 5 days; malt extract agar for yeast isolation.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Diluent | 0.1% peptone water | Peptone, Bacteriological |
| Count plate | Potato dextrose agar (PDA) | Potato Dextrose Agar H |
| Yeast isolation | Malt extract agar (MEA) | Malt Extract Agar H |
DRBC and DG18 (dichloran media) are not in the range; Rose-Bengal Chloramphenicol Agar Base is the dichloran-free RBC formulation.
Chapter 29: Cronobacter
Pre-enrichment in BPW, isolation on chromogenic agars, purification on TSA and confirmation by PCR and biochemical tests; the method for powdered infant formula.
| Step | Medium named in BAM | STBIO product |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-enrichment | Buffered peptone water (BPW) | Buffered Peptone Water H |
| Purification | Trypticase soy agar (TSA) | Tryptic Soy Agar |
Chapters 6 and 8: Shigella and Yersinia enterocolitica
Shigella (Chapter 6) is isolated on MacConkey Agar after anaerobic enrichment in Shigella broth and confirmed on Triple Sugar Iron Agar. Yersinia enterocolitica (Chapter 8) is cold-enriched in PSBB, isolated on MacConkey Agar and CIN agar, and confirmed on Urea Agar Base (Christensen). Shigella broth, PSBB and CIN are not in the range.
Frequently asked questions
Can a Taiwan-made medium replace BD Difco or Oxoid in a BAM method? BAM names formulations, not brands, so a medium made to the same formulation is acceptable once your laboratory has verified it. Run a parallel comparison on the chapter's reference strains (productivity and colony morphology for count media, selectivity and differential reactions for selective media) as ISO 11133 describes, keep the records, and update the supplier list. STBIO supplies samples, batch COAs and cultural response data for the comparison; the catalog numbers of the brands you are replacing are on the brand cross-reference.
What documents does a US quality team receive? Technical data sheet, SDS, COA per batch, and the regulatory and quality documents set: ISO 22000 certificate, Halal certificate for H-coded products, allergen and GMO statements, country-of-origin and animal-origin statements. Each product page also generates a regulatory statement on letterhead.
How are orders shipped to the US? From Taiwan by air or sea under EXW or FOB terms, with HS codes and documents listed on the ordering page. There is no US warehouse; lead time and pack sizes are confirmed on the quotation.