Abstract: Cronobacter sakazakii(C. sakazakii)is an important pathogen that contaminats powdered infant formula.Therefore, it is urgent to develop safe and efficient bactericidal agents to ensure the safety of infant milk powder.Inspired by ferroptosis, the bactericidal effects of five common iron salts on C. sakazakii were evaluated, including minimum bactericidal concentration(MBC), cell membrane integrity, intracellular reactive oxygen species(ROS), degree of lipid peroxidation.The results showed that the five ferric salts performed certain bactericidal effects on C. sakazakii, among which ferric chloride showed the strongest bactericidal effect with the MBC of 200 μmol/L.When treated with ferric chloride, the cell membrane of C. sakazakii was damaged, the level of intracellular ROS increased significantly, and the degree of lipid peroxidation increased.Meanwhile, the addition of ROS scavenger N-Acetyl-L-cysteine and ferroptosis inhibitor Liproxstatin-1 could alleviate the bactericidal effect of ferric chloride on C. sakazakii, which indicated that exogenous ferric chloride could induce ferroptosis of C. sakazakii.This study provides a theoretical basis for the application of ferric salts in food sterilization, and also provides a new idea for the control of foodborne pathogens.