The efficacy of the water-assisted ultraviolet-C light (WUVC) strategy was evaluated as an alternative to chlorine sanitization and compared to ‘conventional’ dry technology (DUVC) for the inactivation of Salmonella enterica, Listeria monocytogenes and murine norovirus (MNV-1) on strawberries. Strawberries were washed in a laboratory scale prototype (LAB-UVC-Gama) consisting of a tank filled with water, equipped with 4 UV-C lamps emitting a dose of 0.6, 1.3, 3.2 and 6.3 kJ m⁻². For DUVC, the same doses were used. Moreover, trials with the 4 lamps off with water, or with a chlorine solution (200 ppm, pH 6.5), were carried out as a control treatment. Reductions of artificially inoculated L. monocytogenes and S. enterica, and the infectivity of MNV-1 after WUVC treatments were comparable to those obtained with chlorine-wash, which were equivalent with all irradiation doses tested for all microorganisms studied (P < 0.05). The implementation of the WUVC strategy improved the DUVC system after 2-min exposure (1.3 kJ m⁻²), by 1.2 and 1.6 log for S. enterica and L. monocytogenes, respectively. At 3.2 kJ m^-2 dose (5 min), WUVC enhanced the inactivation of S. enterica compared with control washing treatment by 1.5 log. After 10 min, pathogenic bacteria were reduced by > 4 log by WUVC treatment and chlorine sanitization. For MNV-1 reductions, we reported > 1.4 log TCID₅₀ with 95 % certainty with the different treatments and exposure times after decontamination procedures. For MNV-1, the increase in the irradiation dose (kJ m⁻²) applied did not affect their reduction on strawberries. Moreover, WUVC light was effective at significantly reducing the microorganisms in wash water, avoiding cross-contamination and thus, allowing water recirculation. The results obtained in the present study provide new tools to ensure the safety of strawberries intended to be processed, contributing to affording a more innovative and sustainable future for the food industry. However, industry operation studies are needed to conclude that the treatments tested in the present study are a good alternative to chlorine.

评估了水辅助紫外线C（WUVC）策略替代氯消毒的功效，并与“常规”干燥技术（DUVC）进行了沙门氏菌，单核细胞增生性李斯特菌和鼠诺如病毒（MNV-1 ）灭活的比较）放在草莓上。在实验室规模的原型机（LAB-UVC-Gama）中洗涤草莓，该原型机由装有水的水箱组成，水箱装有4个发出0.6、1.3、3.2和6.3 kJ m ^-2剂量的UV-C灯。对于DUVC，使用相同剂量。此外，将4盏灯用水或氯溶液（200 ppm，pH 6.5）熄灭作为对照处理。减少人工接种的单核细胞增生李斯特菌和肠炎链球菌，WUVC处理后MNV-1的感染性与用氯洗涤获得的可比性相当，这与所有研究的微生物的所有辐照剂量相等（P <0.05）。在暴露2分钟（1.3 kJ m ^-2）后，WUVC策略的实施改善了DUVC系统，分别对肠炎链球菌和单核细胞增生李斯特菌分别提高了1.2和1.6 log 。在3.2 kJ m ^-2剂量（5分钟）下，与对照洗涤处理相比，WUVC增强了肠炎链球菌的灭活1.5 log。10分钟后，通过WUVC处理和氯消毒将病原菌减少了> 4 log。对于MNV-1减少，我们报告了> 1.4 log TCID ₅₀消毒程序后的不同处理和暴露时间具有95％的确定性。对于MNV-1，所施加的辐射剂量（kJ m ^-2）的增加并不影响其对草莓的减少。此外，WUVC光可有效减少洗涤水中的微生物，避免交叉污染，从而使水再循环。在本研究中获得的结果为确保拟加工草莓的安全性提供了新的工具，有助于为食品工业提供更具创新性和可持续性的未来。但是，需要进行行业操作研究得出结论，即本研究中测试的处理方法是氯的良好替代品。