A new selective medium, galactose (GL) agar, was developed for the enumeration of Bifidobacterium spp. in yogurts. This medium contains lithium chloride (0.4 g/1) and galactose (10 g/l) as selective inhibitory agents. The viable counts of bifidobacteria in the commercial yogurts sold in Europe were determined by using GL agar. From five of eight commercial yogurts tested, bifidobacteria were detected in 10⁴-10⁷ per ml, while from the remaining three they were not detected. Five ^{Bifidobacterium} strains isolated were identified on carbohydrate fermentation patterns and DNA-DNA homology. Only one strain was classified ^{B. animalis.} and the remaining four strains as ^{B. animalis.}