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Swiftlets and Edible Birds Nests
Asian Swallow Bird Nests
"swallow's nest". yàn wō (燕窝)

Swallow bird nests are accepted by Asia to have medical and health enhancing effect, a rejuvenating agent that slows down the aging process.
Swallow nests also act as demulcent to the lungs and are used in relieving phlegm and coughs.  

It is an excellent supplement for all ages:
- Elderly and Children - stimulate appetite and aids digestion
- Pregnant woman - give birth to a beautiful and smooth complexion baby
- Patient - provide protein and nutrient to recover quickly from illness
- Women - make their facial skin smooth and lively

1-Golden bird's nest
2-Golden bird's nest
3-Indonesia bird's nest
4-Keningau bird's nest
5-Kunak bird's nest
6-Manas bird's nest
7-Philippines bird's nest
8- Sandakan Black bird's nest
9- Sipadan bird's nest
10-White bird's nest

Swiftlets Nests  - 燕窝Traditional Chinese Health Food -

For centuries in China these nests have been considered nourishing and tasty as well as a booster of health for the sick and aging; they are even believed to be an aphrodisiac.

By 2020. Malaysia is expected to have 63,000 swiftlet premises producing 870 metric tones of bird's nest worth RM3.5 billion.

In 2010 alone, the production of bird's nest was around 290 metric tones valued at RM1.2 billion.

Malaysian government has identified swiftlet farming as a high potential industry, and as such, accorded it priority in the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP)

In Sabah, the production of Edible Bird Nest (EBN) had long been practiced, particularly, traditional bird's nest of high quality from caves, including Gua Guomantong and Gua Madai.


The export value of bird's nest contributed by Sabah was in the range of about RM13 million to RM17 million annually, with the main markets being Hong Kong and China.

He said apart from caves, the rearing of swiftlets was on the rise. According to the Sabah Wildlife Department, in just 2009, there were 500 swiftlet premises in Sabah.

2 types of bird's nests for export from Malaysia

Certificate of authenticity
Malaysian government is now investing in Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) to allows a product to be easily tracked from the source to the consumer.

The bird's nests can be sealed in a box with an RFID tag that contains a microchip embedded with details about the harvest. A handheld scanner emits a radio frequency to unlock that information. Sound similar to barcodes, but RFID tags are harder to duplicate.

Swiftlet farmhouse

Swiftlet farms are built in large cavernous buildings, that offer plenty of surfaces for the swiftlets to build their nests

The nests of the swiftlet are formed from saliva, and are highly prized as the main ingredient in bird's nest soup

BBC © 2012 :
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-18193981

Bird’s Nest Protocol
The new Bird’s Nest Protocol ensure that Malaysia’s bird’s nest fulfils the standards required and is of high quality. In this new protocol, exporting bird’s nest require certifications from the Health Ministry and a certificate of origin from the Veterinary Services Department.

The certificate of origin is important because it traces the origins of the bird’s nest through radio frequency to ensure that the edible bird’s nest is authentic and safe for consumption.
There are about 50,000 bird’s nest traders in Malaysia but the ministry has only managed to register about 2,000 in the last six months.
Edible bird’s nest has been used in Chinese cooking for centuries. But China had banned bird’s nest from Malaysia after it was found to have excessive nitrite in July 2011

Bird’s Nest Museum : www.theborneopost.com/2012
 

Swiftlets Farming - Birds' Nest Farming using Nesting Houses

July 13, 2012, Friday :
Sabah Bird’s Nest Association (SABA) in collaboration with AMG Enterprise is undertaking a plan for a bird’s nest museum in Sandakan Town. The museum could educate the public and tourists on the bird’s nest industry which is currently growing rapidly.
The museum’s establishment could encourage the public to delve into the bird’s nest business and subsequently spur economic growth. The museum introduces the bird’s nest industry’s potential for the ecosystem while at the same time reap lucrative rewards for future businessmen. The bird’s nest industry would boost economic growth, especially in the rural areas that are involved.
When completed, the museum will be a tourist attraction in Sandakan. Visitors will be fascinated by the internal design of the museum that will resemble a bird’s nest.

Birdnest Center - Breeding Swiftlet in The Farming House
is a modern and commercialized way of producing bird’s nest
The traditional way has been the harvesting from caves.
Swiflet farming is about attracting swiflets to inhabit in a man-built building, which is referred to as swiflet house.
The swiflets would then start breeding in the swiflet house where, swiflet pairs will build bird’s nests for this purpose.
 Bird’s nest is where swiflets lay their eggs and hatch them. When the young swiflets reaches maturity to fly and live independently, they would leave their nests, leaving the nests ready to be harvested by the owner of the swiflet house.
Nest harvesters in Indonesia have developed the practice of "farming" which entails buying up houses with colonies of Mossy- nest Swiftlets which are cross-fostered: the eggs of White-nest Swiftlets are placed in these nest colonies.
Once mature the White-nest Swiftlets return to the house and establish a colony.
With the escalation in demand these sources have been supplanted since the late 1990s by purpose-built nesting houses, usually reinforced concrete structures following the design of the SE Asian shop-house ("ruko").
These nesting houses are normally found in urban areas near the sea, since the birds have a propensity to flock in such places.
This has become an extraordinary industry, mainly based on a series of towns in the Indonesian Province of North Sumatra, which have been completely transformed by the activity.

 

While the Edible-nest and Black-nest Swiftlet are not yet on the endangered species lists of either CITES or the IUCN, there are measures which attempt to protect them.
Supplier countries have domestic legislation to regulate importing/exporting, hunting, poaching, and selling of Swiftlet nests.
For example, since 1934 there has been an ordinance in Sarawak, Malaysia which permits the nests to be harvested only every 75 days.
Currently in Sabah only 2 harvests per year of White-nest Swiftlets are allowed.
Despite policies to protect the bird their numbers continue to decline, probably a result of illegal trade which counts for a substantial percentage of harvested nests.
The World Wide Fund for nature is currently preparing a proposal for the 1994 meeting of the Convention on International Trade on Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES) which will be held in the United States.
The proposal will recommend that the Swiftlet species be placed on CITES' Appendix II (threatened species).

The rising price and rising demand for these nests have resulted in a decline in the swiftlet population.
Poachers and the cutting down of forests where Swiftlets feed contribute to the decline.
Indonesia is the biggest supplier of swiftlet nests with
Thailand ranking second, followed by
Vietnam,
Singapore,
Burma,
Malaysia,
southern India and
Sri Lanka.

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