GASTONIA, N.C. — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will allow Gastonia-based Parkdale Mills to develop synthetic nasal swabs for COVID-19 test kits.
The swabs will be manufactured by a company subsidiary, U.S. Cotton, in its Cleveland plant.
The production will help address a nationwide swab shortage as the demand for testing continues to rise.
U.S. Cotton's president, John Nims, said the design looks like a q-tip except the ends are made of polyester and not cotton.
"We're pretty excited about being able to do that and help," Nims said. "As we get people trained on the different process, we'll go [24/7] and make as many as we can for as long as these swabs are needed."
He said the swabs can be used for both healthcare testing sites and stay-at-home testing kits.
The FDA approved the company's design following a joint clinical investigation, which also included UnitedHealth Group, Quantigen, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Nims said production will start this week, and he estimated the company will be able to make around three million swabs a week.
However, he hoped to increase that number as the company gets more experience making the specialized swabs.
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