Environmentally benign, peroxide-based antibacterial agents were bound to cotton, cotton/polyester and polyester nonwovens before and after fabrication. Bound peroxide was 0.2-1.5% after process washing and drying and varied with the nature of the fibrous substrate, curing conditions and additives in the treating formulation. Magnesium hydroperoxyacetate (MHPA or [HOO-Mg-OAc]) is the active antibacterial agent. At comparable peroxide contents, antibacterial activity is usually superior for all cotton fabrics and cotton/polyester blend fabrics compared to all polyester fabrics due to the better moisture transport properties of hydrophilic natural fibers. Optimum results for cotton/polyester nonwovens were achieved when they contained a core/low-melting sheath bicomponent polyester binder fiber and were subsequently cured with a formulation containing an alkaline polyethylene softener at temperatures that melt or soften the binder fiber component. These blend fabrics had peroxide contents greater than 1% after leaching and gave complete reduction of both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria.