Which Culture Media Do Taiwan FDA Food Microbiology Methods Specify? Cross-Reference for 21 Announced Methods

Which culture media do Taiwan FDA food microbiology methods specify?

Food manufacturers, contract laboratories and health authorities in Taiwan test food against the "Methods of Test for Food Microorganisms" announced by the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) under Article 38 of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation. Each method carries a code beginning with MOHWM, and section 2.2 of the method text lists every diluent and medium, formulation included. Exporters shipping food or ingredients to Taiwan, and laboratories validating products for the Taiwan market, meet these methods on test reports.

This article cross-references the media named in 21 announced methods (13 common methods step by step, and 8 further pathogen and drinking-water methods in a summary table) with the dehydrated culture media STBIO manufactures at its own plant in Xizhi, New Taipei. Three points first:

• The TFDA announces methods; it does not certify media brands. No brand carries a "TFDA approved" status. Laboratories verify media performance with reference strains under ISO 11133 or their own quality system. STBIO ships a COA and cultural response data with every batch, and samples are available for verification.
• "Base" means the method adds something. Baird-Parker needs egg yolk tellurite, MYP needs egg yolk and polymyxin, Oxford medium is built on Columbia blood agar base plus supplements. Add these as the method directs; this article matches the base medium only.
• Follow the current announced version. The decimal after the code is the revision (MOHWM0014.02 is the second revision). Check the TFDA announced methods list after any revision.

Every product page carries a "Taiwan FDA announced test methods" block stating which method and which step the medium belongs to, and each method has its own product list under Find media by standard method.

The diluent first: 0.1% peptone diluent

The aerobic plate count, E. coli, S. aureus, lactic acid bacteria, yeast and mould, B. cereus and C. perfringens methods all dilute samples in 0.1% peptone diluent: 1 g peptone in 1000 mL distilled water, autoclaved at 121 °C for 15 minutes (phosphate buffer or saline is also permitted for samples other than meat products). This step uses plain peptone rather than a medium: Peptone, Bacteriological (Halal version Peptone, Bacteriological H). A laboratory diluting dozens of samples a day uses more peptone than agar.

Aerobic plate count (MOHWM0014.02)

Serial dilution, pour plate on Plate Count Agar, 35 °C for 48 ± 2 h, count plates with 25 to 250 colonies.

Coliforms (MOHWM0015.01)

Three-tube MPN: inoculate LST broth, incubate at 35 °C, transfer gas-positive tubes to BGLB broth for confirmation and read the MPN table.

Escherichia coli (MOHWM0023.02)

LST presumptive, EC broth in a 44.5 °C water bath, streak gas-positive tubes on L-EMB, purify suspect colonies on PCA and identify by IMViC (indole, methyl red, VP, citrate). A TBX selective plate count is also given.

Enterobacteriaceae (MOHWM0028.00)

Double-layer VRBG pour plates at 37 °C for 24 ± 2 h; streak suspect colonies on nutrient agar and confirm with the glucose oxidation-fermentation and oxidase tests.

Salmonella (MOHWM0025.01)

Pre-enrichment (lactose broth, or buffered peptone water for specified sample types), selective enrichment (selenite cystine broth SC and tetrathionate broth TT), isolation on XLD, HE and BS, presumptive confirmation on TSI and LIA slants, biochemical tests (urea, lysine, indole, carbohydrates) and serology.

The tetrathionate broth (TT) in the method is the FDA BAM formulation. STBIO's MKTTn is the Muller-Kauffmann version used by ISO 6579-1, a different formulation; prepare TT as the method directs. Bismuth sulfite agar (BS) and lysine iron agar (LIA) are not currently in the range.

Staphylococcus aureus (MOHWM0002.02)

Direct spread plating on Baird-Parker medium (MPN in TSB with 10% NaCl for low-count samples); suspect colonies grown in brain heart infusion broth and confirmed by the coagulase test.

Listeria monocytogenes in foods (MOHWM0029.00)

Enrichment in buffered Listeria enrichment broth (BLEB), plating on Oxford (OXA), PALCAM or modified Oxford (MOX) with a chromogenic agar recommended in parallel, suspect colonies to TSAYE and TSBYE, then haemolysis, motility and biochemical confirmation.

Half Fraser and Fraser broths belong to ISO 11290, not to this method; laboratories running ISO methods or export verification can use Fraser Broth Base.

Lactic acid bacteria (MOHWM0013.01)

Serial dilution in 0.1% peptone diluent and pour plating on MRS agar; bifidobacteria on TOS-propionate agar and enterococci on Enterococcus agar are counted separately.

Yeast and mould count (MOHWM0008.01)

Serial dilution in 0.1% peptone diluent and enumeration on DRBC, DG18, potato dextrose agar or malt agar depending on the sample.

DRBC and DG18 contain dichloran. STBIO's Rose-Bengal Chloramphenicol Agar Base is the dichloran-free RBC formulation used in ISO 21527-type methods and does not correspond directly to this method.

Bacillus cereus (MOHWM0016.02)

Spread plating on MYP agar, or MPN in trypticase-soy-polymyxin broth; suspect colonies purified on nutrient agar and confirmed biochemically.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus (MOHWM0011.02)

Enrichment in alkaline peptone water, streaking on TCBS agar, confirmation of suspect colonies in salt-supplemented TSB, TSI and biochemical tests.

Clostridium perfringens (MOHWM0006.02)

Anaerobic count on TSC agar; suspect colonies grown in fluid thioglycollate medium and confirmed in buffered motility-nitrate medium and lactose-gelatin medium.

Cronobacter, Enterobacter sakazakii (MOHWM0004.03)

Powdered infant formula and similar samples are pre-enriched in buffered peptone water, selectively enriched in LST broth with 2% NaCl, isolated on chromogenic agar, purified on TSA and confirmed biochemically.

Other announced methods: O157:H7, pathogenic E. coli, Shigella, V. cholerae, Campylobacter, Aeromonas, Yersinia, drinking-water coliforms

These eight methods mostly reuse the confirmation media listed above, so only the correspondence is given:

Not included: hepatitis A virus and norovirus (no culture media), Clostridium botulinum (cooked meat medium, TPGY, anaerobic egg yolk agar), Pseudomonas aeruginosa and faecal streptococci in drinking water (M-PA-C, milk agar, KF, bile esculin), as none of those media are currently in the range.

Frequently asked questions

Will results change if we switch from an imported brand to Taiwan-made media? The announced methods specify formulations, not brands. Any maker can produce the same standard formulation; what differs is raw-material grade and batch consistency. When changing brands, run a parallel comparison with reference strains as ISO 11133 describes (productivity and colony morphology for count media, selectivity and differential reactions for selective media) before adopting. STBIO provides samples, batch COAs and cultural response data; the process is described under Second-source qualification.

Are the media in TFDA methods the same as in FDA BAM and ISO methods? Most TFDA methods are modelled on the US FDA BAM, so the media names and formulations largely match (LST, BGLB, EC, Baird-Parker, MYP, TCBS and TSC among them). ISO methods use different media for Salmonella (MKTTn, RVS), Listeria (Half Fraser, Fraser) and Enterobacteriaceae (EE broth). Laboratories serving both domestic testing and export verification keep both sets.

Where is the current version of each method? Search "食品微生物之檢驗方法" on the TFDA announced methods list; each entry links to the announcement and the method PDF. This article follows the versions announced as of November 2026.

How do we buy small quantities? Every product page adds directly to a quotation request, universities and institutes can obtain a quotation before raising a purchase request, and first-time users can request a sample.