b'From a hygiene viewpoint, paperFrom a towels are superior to electric airhygiene dryers. Paper towels should beviewpoint, recommended in locations wherepaper towels hygiene is paramount, such asare superior hospitals and clinics.Manyto electric studies have found friction to be aair dryers. key component in hand drying forPaper towels removing contamination. Bacteriashould be were removed from washed handsrecommended by the mechanical abrasive actionin locations of drying with paper towels. Andwhere microbiological testing of the paperhygiene is towels after use indicated that manyparamount.bacteria were transferred from the hands to the paper towels. Figure 2. Bleach vs Unbleached Fiber.HOW WILL POST-PANDEMIC TOWEL PRODUCTION RESPOND?Figure 1 shows the global commercial hand towel production capacity for the top four producing countries. Going into the first quarter of 2020, we see the United States produces 57 percent of all commercial hand towels. This provides the opportunity to use the US as a test case for modeling potential demand changes after the pandemic passes. The American hand towel market covers a wide range of quality. Slightly less than a quarter of all towels are still the plain unbleached, brown, wet-creped sheets that have long been the low-price product. Figure 2 shows the bleached and unbleached fiber breakdown, and Figure 3 shows that about 85 percent of the total volume is Figure 3. Commercial Hand Towel Fiber Type. made from recovered paper.TISSUE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL9'