Attenuation of 10 MeV electron beam energy to achieve low doses does not affect Salmonella spp. inactivation kinetics

•10 MeV eBeam energy was attenuated to 2.9±0.22 MeV using HDPE sheets.•Attenuation of eBeam energy does not affect the inactivation kinetics of Salmonella.•Microbial inactivation is independent of eBeam energy in the range of 3–10 MeV.

The effect of attenuating the energy of a 10 MeV electron beam on Salmonella inactivation kinetics was investigated. No statistically significant differences were observed between the D10 values of either Salmonella 4,[5],12:i:- or a Salmonella cocktail (S. 4,[5],12:i:-, Salmonella Heidelberg, Salmonella Newport, Salmonella Typhimurium, Salmonella) when irradiated with either a non-attenuated 10 MeV eBeam or an attenuated 10 MeV eBeam (~2.9±0.22 MeV). The results show that attenuating the energy of a 10 MeV eBeam to achieve low doses does not affect the inactivation kinetics of Salmonella spp. when compared to direct 10 MeV eBeam irradiation.