A randomised, double-blind trial was conducted to compare the intake of a standard (4.2kJ/ml) and a nutrient dense (6.3kJ/ml) commericial liquid supplement, and to assess their effect on total nutrient intake. Both products were offered as a supplement to the regular hospital diet to 34 elderly in-patients with poor appetite and intake. Only 24 of these patients completed the entire supplementation period of 10 days. Median (interquartile range) volumes of intake were 300 (200-400) ml of the standard product and 400 (250-500) ml of the nutrient dense product (NS). Neither product decreased energy intake from the hospital diet. In fact, patients on the standard product increased slightly their intake from the hospital diet. This was enough to outweigh the increased contribution to total energy intake provided by the nutrient dense product. Both products received high palatability ratings, but high ratings did not imply high volume intake or good compliance.