This monograph has been assessed by members of the IUMS–ICFMH Working Party on Culture Media and given ‘Approved’ status.

This is a selective medium for the enumeration of moulds and yeasts in foods. King et al. (1979) showed that the combination of dichloran and rose bengal markedly restricts the size and height of mould colonies, thus preventing overgrowth of luxuriant species and assisting accurate counting of colonies. The addition of chloramphenicol and the reduced pH of 5.6 serve to prevent the growth of most bacteria. This medium can be used to enumerate both toxigenic and non-toxigenic moulds. It is not diagnostic for detecting specific mycotoxin producers.