Alternative egg decontamination techniques to washing

This chapter discusses the alternative decontamination techniques to egg washing researched during the last ten years. Hot air or microwave pasteurization represents the most commonly evaluated methods to thermally inactivate the microbial cell, while gas plasma and pulsed light are some techniques where inactivation can be achieved at room temperature. the efficacy of the reviewed alternative methods against different microorganisms and the risks associated with the loss of egg quality such as the cuticle, the shell membranes, the albumen and the yolk are reported.