Chemically defined media for commercial fermentations

The use of chemically defined media is gaining popularity in some commercial fermentations, particularly for the preparation of biological products. Although these media are still not frequently developed for industrial processes, they do exhibit favorable characteristics at large scale that are not observed with traditional complex media. This review focuses on the application, development, and practical considerations, especially process economics, of fermentations in chemically defined media in an industrial environment. Received: 3 August 1998 / Received revision: 16 November 1998 / Accepted: 21 November 1998