PREVENTING MILDEW GROWTH ON COTTON SWABS AND OTHER PRODUCTS CONTAINING COTTON

The action of microorganisms is generally dependent on factors such as availability of organic or inorganic nutrients, sunlight, and moistur e. In this study, a combination of factors occurring during manufactur ing and storage were found to cause mold growth on cotton swabs. These factors included improper or inadequate sanitization, contaminated Me thocel, inadequate amounts of preservative (0.1% or less) in the infes ted Methocel, high moisture levels (30% or more) in cotton swabs, plas tic sticks/put ups, and warehousing cotton swabs under hot and humid c onditions. Sealed plastic bags used for storage, essentially unventila ted units, were found to provide an ideal moisture chamber for mildew development. Implementation of certain control options solved the abov e problems, ensuring mildew-free manufacturing of cotton swabs.