The Consultation agreed that the scope of the meeting would include probiotics
and prebiotics in food, and exclude reference to the term biotherapeutic agents, and
beneficial microorganisms not used in food. The Consultation has redefined probiotics for
the purpose of this meeting as ‘Live microorganisms which when administered in
adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host’, but restricted its scope to
discussion of ‘Live microorganisms which when consumed in adequate amounts as part
of food1 confer a health benefit on the host’. The Consultation agreed that the specific
issues related to powder milk could not be discussed without a more general
consideration of probiotics in food.