House Farming of Edible Bird Saliva Nest

Due to the high economic value of Bird Saliva Nest, swiftlets are being reared extensively in man- made houses in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand to increase the production of Bird Saliva Nest. In recent years, the price of Bird Saliva Nest increased drastically due to high consumer demand. This has led to Bird Saliva Nest producers and the Malaysian government to’ make efforts for increasing the production of Bird Saliva Nest through conservation and house farming. In several areas, the conservation of resources has been aided by the domestication of swiftlet species in bird houses.
House farming of swiftlets in Indonesia began in the 18005, and the industry has considerably developed since then. Bird Saliva Nest is cultivated by cross fostering, where the eggs of the white bellied swiftlets are replaced with the eggs of Bird Saliva Nest producing swiftlets, thus establishing a new population of Bird Saliva Nest producing swiftlets. While populations of the cave Bird Saliva Nest swiflets have been declining due to over exploitation of their nests, rapidly growing house farming of the Bird Saliva Nests has given them a sigh of relief.
The Government of Malaysia under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI, formerly known as Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment) together with the Wild Life Department of Malaysia (PERHILITAN) have recently begun encouraging the general public to venture into the very lucrative Bird Saliva Nest industry.
Over the years, a lot of conservation workshops and laws have been implemented in Bird Saliva Nest producing countries to raise the production of Bird Saliva Nest. However, the research on the house-collected Bird Saliva Nest is scarce as the previously researched samples have been mostly obtained from the caves in Indonesia.

House Farming of Edible Bird Saliva Nest

Bird Premise or Bird Saliva Nest Ranching

The most interesting thing about these swiftlets are their nests. They construct nests with glutinous strands of starch-like saliva produced by a pair of large, salivary glands and thereafter mate and breed their young ones.
It is the nest material that gives them an upper hand over the rest of the Bird Saliva Nest in the world. The nest looks like a cupped hand or a crescent shaped bowl about 3-5 inches in diameter. The flat side is stuck to a wall (a cave wall in wild nest, or a wooden base in cultivated/house nest) and other side of the nest is a place for them to perch, and within the hollow of the nest are either their eggs or their chicks.
The Bird Saliva Nest industry is a multi-million dollar enterprise from production, sorting, and cleaning to domestic and international trade. According to a survey in December 2001, approximately 1000 buildings/houses cultivating Bird Saliva Nest in Malaysia were reported. The houses produced not less than 10 tons per year (cultivated white Bird Saliva Nest/house nest) while the world demand is 200 tons per year. The demand is still growing but the supply is only able to fulfill half of the demand, which kept the price ever increasing.
Basically, a bird house is a building with artificially created conditions similar to a swiftlet dwelling cave. It is able to attract swiftlets so that they live and breed in it.
In designing a bird house, care should be taken of physical and behavioral needs of birds, human treatment and animal management, human safety, and government rules and regulations.

Physical and Behavioral Needs of Birds

Most of the bird farmers concentrate only on the bird house construction for attracting birds into the houses. This is by far the most important factor in controlling or affecting the bird population in the house. However, it would be better to give consideration to other factors as well prior to the selection of the bird house location. These factors include the swiftlet’s flight path, its population at the specific area, nearest source for food and water and environment assets.
The most important factor is whether the selected area has the particular specie of birds as part of ecosystem. If the area has any of the birds flying through, it would be good. However, if the selected area is quite far away from the bird’s habitat area, it may not be a good choice. Furthermore, the birds can be attracted to the bird house by using a special bird recording sound.
After a particular area is selected, surrounding factors also need a serious consideration. It is also important to find out if the environmental factors in the area under consideration are not supporting. If there is any factory or industry producing heavy toxic materials, smoke or even noise, it is better to avoid that area. Besides, it is quite beneficial to have the presence of supporting factors such as river, pond, forest reserve and open field nearby the selected area.

Human Treatment and Animal Management

Once the selection of the location is made, it is important to plan a bird house or convert a shop house into bird farming premises (bird house). At this stage, human treatment and animal management concerns are very crucial.
The information on building bird houses can be obtained through farming magazines, newspaper advertisements or bird farming association. Expert services are available which can provide guidance in building or converting the shop lot into bird house.
The expert credentials are being emphasized when the potential clients are shown a previously constructed successful bird house producing adequate amount of nests. However, most of the experts’ advice on account of their experiences without concrete finding, studies or research. The behavior of birds is scarcely studied as there are only a few publications on the bird’s behavior.
There are no records on how many birds were to return their house if they were to hatch. Also no data are available on how many times these birds fly back to their nest daily. Besides, the factor of importance is the bird’s willingness to stay back into the origin house or chose a new house for their nest building. However, people have been successfully attracting birds into a house and harvesting Bird Saliva Nest.
Human beings must always treat birds as their companions without staying too close to them. Birds must be given privacy, secured environment and enough comfort to nest their next generation. Environmental guidelines should be followed while applying pesticides and treating the waste of birds. Besides, a great deal of efforts is often required in maintaining the integrity of the nests.
One of the most serious risks associated with bird’s life in the bird house is the theft of their nests. The thief breaks into the bird house and harvest the nests on behalf of the owners. It is a very cruel and off human act to steal nests from the house, as the thief never considers the life of the chicks and eggs in the nest and just drops them on the floor, making this helpless creature to die slowly and with a great deal of torture. Therefore, the bird house owners must consider the security structure and system to secure their wealth and also their wealth creating partners, the swiftlets.

Human Safety and Government Rules and Regulation

There has never been so much emphasis on human safety during nest cultivation. This has totally been a neglected fact in the pursuit for maximum profit. Although surveillance test conducted by the Department of Veterinary Services from the year 2000 have shown negative results for Newcastle Disease, Avian Influenza or Bird Flu H5N1, there is still risk of getting this viruses.
There is a misconception that these birds do not share the same water source with other birds or animals. In reality, they take water from ponds and rivers by flying low on the water surface and occasionally scoping up a sip of liquid. This is particularly true during hot weather and after a long draught. Therefore, it would be wise to take precautions while making entry and exit from the bird house by putting up safety devices to ensure such viruses and other pesticide do not enter or exit from the bird house. There should be contingency plans in the event of an outbreak to segregate people from the birds. However, till now, there is yet to find any example of this setup in any of the bird houses in Malaysia, Thailand, or Indonesia or anywhere else in the world.
The Malaysian government has not given any clear guidelines as to the setting-up of bird houses in Malaysia. Therefore, commercial shop houses have been converted into bird houses with people running restaurants downstairs. Some of the bird house have residents who live there to safeguard their asset. The establishment of bird houses in a residential area might have associated health risks. There are no guidelines and regulations available whether or not bird farming can be done in housing are or in the middle of the town centre. Care needs to be taken of the children who are sick and coughing when such premises are built around your area. However, the only guideline published by one of the government agencies has discussed noise pollution and the ugly structure leaving the township, an eyesore.
Swiftlets Eco Park by Bio Research Centre is the one particular development where specific areas and premises were selected to build and farm swiftlets. It is the first and the only one in Malaysia which the government has approved so far. This is an opportunity for all the potential bird farmers to buy one of these premises and start cultivating Bird Saliva Nests without worrying about the rules and regulations and other annoying factors.

Economic Factors of a Bird House

To go into the nest business, choose a good location, build a house, install all necessary facilities to attract birds and start harvesting. All these processes need an investment ranging from RM 300,000-RM 500,000 depending on the location and size of the building. This investment will generate a good and progressive income over the years, while the owner maintains his full time job. This business can be done by everyone. Suppose by having a harvest of 110 to 130 nests that make up to l kg of the market price of RM 4,000-RM 6,000 every month after one or two years. The investment will increase by 30 to 100% where most of the cases are. That is why this is the business of what everyone is talking about.
The funny part in the whole business is how to grade a raw Bird Saliva Nest. Normally, all the bird farmers sell to a middle man by evaluation through experience and making further negotiations on the price. They evaluate the size, color, impurity (bird’s feather) and shape (strait or angle), but have little concern on moisture, integrity, pesticide or heavy metal content. This is extremely unacceptable as Bird Saliva Nest is considered as a tonic and most of the time it is consumed by elderly, youth and expecting mothers.

Future Development of a Bird House

Future development of bird houses depends upon the government moves. It is certain that this industry will not stop here. It is expected to continue its growth due to the lucrative returns. However, more stringent rules and regulations must be installed to reduce or nullify the degree of hazards brought about by this industry. Also, adding a system of taxation into this multi-million industry will be a positive move. The newly licensed bird houses will be in great demand due to two reasons. One of the reasons is that the shop houses converted into bird houses are off welcoming by the public, and the other is the stress of the fear that government may start demolishing the previously established shop houses sometime in the future.

Bird Saliva Nest attenuates high fat diet-induced oxidative stress and inflammation via regulation of hepatic antioxidant and inflammatory genes

Abstract

Background:

Bird Saliva Nest is an antioxidant-rich supplement that is popular in many parts of Asia. Its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties have been reported using in vitro system. This paper aimed to determine the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of Bird Saliva Nest in in high fat diet induced rats model.

Methods:

We evaluate if those properties can be translated in rats. High fat diet (HFD) was fed to rats for 12 weeks to determine its effects on oxidative stress and inflammation, and compared with HFD + Simvastatin and HFD + Bird Saliva Nest (2.5 or 20 %). Weights were measured weekly, while serum and hepatic markers of oxidative stress (total antioxidant status and TBARS) and inflammation (interleukin 6 [IL-6], C-reactive protein [CRP] and tumor necrosis factor alpha [TNF-α]) were determined at the end of the intervention. In addition, transcriptional changes in hepatic antioxidant (superoxide dismutase, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase) and inflammation (C-reactive protein, chemokine [C-C] motif 2, nuclear factor kappa beta 1 and tumor necrosis factor alpha) genes were evaluated.

Results:

The results showed increases in oxidative stress (raised TBARS and lowered total antioxidant status) and inflammatory markers (raised CRP, IL-6 and TNF-α) in HFD induced rats with corresponding attenuation of antioxidant gene expression and potentiation of inflammatory gene expression. Bird Saliva Nest on the other hand attenuated the HFD- induced inflammation and oxidative stress and produced overall better outcomes in comparison with simvastatin.

Conclusions:

In aggregate, the results support the evidence-based utilization of Bird Saliva Nest as a supplement for preventing obesity-related inflammation and oxidative stress in rats. These promising results can open up opportunities for translating the benefits of Bird Saliva Nest to humans.
Keywords: Antioxidants, Bird Saliva Nest, High fat diet, Inflammation, Oxidative stress

Bird Saliva Nest attenuates procoagulation effects of high-fat diet in rats

Bird Saliva Nest is popular in Asia and has long been used traditionally as a supplement. Bird Saliva Nest has been reported to improve dyslipidemia, which is closely linked to hypercoagulation states.
In the present study, the effects of Bird Saliva Nest on high-fat diet- (HFD-) induced coagulation in rats were evaluated. Rats were fed for 12 weeks with HFD alone or in combination with simvastatin or Bird Saliva Nest. Food intake was estimated, and weight measurements were made during the experi- mental period. After sacrifice, serum oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL), adiponectin, leptin, von willibrand factor, prostacyclin, thromboxane and lipid profile, and whole blood coagulation indices (bleeding time, prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, red blood count count, and platelet count) were estimated. Furthermore, hepatic expression of coagulation-related genes was evaluated using multiplex polymerase chain reaction. The results indicated that Bird Saliva Nest could attenuate HFD-induced hypercholesterolemia and coagulation similar to simvastatin, partly through transcriptional regulation of coagulation-related genes. The results suggested that Bird Saliva Nest has the potential for lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease-related hypercoagulation due to hypercholesterolemia.
Keywords: Bird Saliva Nest, coagulation, high-fat diet, hypercholesterolemia, nutrigeno- mics

The Bird Saliva Nest business: from Sumatra to Shenzen, via Melbourne

James Liew's warehouse is a stack of plastic tubs, tucked away in the corner of an office at his Port Melbourne showroom.

Inside those crates is one of the most expensive delicacies in the world: Bird Saliva Nests.
Pale, fragile and very light – each nest weighing around 8 grams – they were created thousands of kilometres away in purpose-built facilities around Palembang on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
Their destination is Shenzen but the stop-over at an industrial estate just outside the Melbourne CBD is no accident.

The Bird Saliva Nest business: from Sumatra to Shenzen, via Melbourne

How Bird Saliva Nest go from Indonesia to China via Australia

What is added in the nests' transit into and out of Australia is something infinitely lighter and almost as valuable as the nests themselves. It is the imprimatur of Australia's food standards regime.
"The reason why we bring it across into Australia is the stringent rules on food that Australian imposes," explains Mr Liew, whose company Company imports and then exports the product.
"Generally speaking, in China we face a lot of imitation product.
"We want to move the raw ingredients into Australia and then process it here with a very minor procedure. We want to get the recognition of Australian quarantine inspection."
The nests themselves are produced by the swiftlet birds, fabricated out of the birds' own hardened saliva to harbour their eggs.
Found only in south-east Asia, the nests have long been prized in Chinese culture for their health-enhancing qualities, where they are typically boiled and served as soup.
"It's from an ancient way," Mr Liew said. "We trust this product to help with bronchitis problems and for skin care."
From Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand to mainland China, it's a trade route as old as the Qing dynasty. Now it's taking a tack through Australia.
The new leg of the journey is partly about creating a new market here in Australia, where Company is selling its product into medicine shops, gifts shop and Crown casino.

What is added in the nests' transit into and out of Australia is something infinitely lighter and almost as valuable as the nests themselves.

Emblazoned on the red and gold labelling of the packaged Bird Saliva Nests are the words "Australian Quarantine".
Mr Liew's family-owned company have gone to considerable effort to get that stamp of approval.
After the nests are transported into a Jakarta factory, they are cleaned and a hygienically sealed into a plastic envelope, known as retort pouch.
That process and a subsequent four-day quarantine stop here are carefully supervised by Australia's biosecurity bureaucrats.
It's a serious business. An outbreak of the H5N1 avian flu last month prompted China to issue a temporary ban on Bird Saliva Nests from Malaysia.
Australia's food safety standards give Mr Liew an edge in the highly competitive retail market of Bird Saliva Nest.
WeChat, the Chinese language social media platform, is a favoured market place for the commodities. It's one reason pricing in Australia, at around $7.50 per gram, is relatively close to the price in China for Company products.
Mr Liew's company also wholesales unbranded Bird Saliva Nests direct from Indonesia into China at far lower rates.
The big mark-up takes place after the nests pass through Australian customs.
"In Australia it's all about protocol and systems. It's all about authenticity," Mr Liew says. "We can add in value based on this Australian presence."
The Bird Saliva Nest business is part of a bigger and growing story of trade with China, now Australia's largest agriculture, forestry and fisheries export market. It was worth around $10 billion in 2015-16.
Company has also teamed with recently listed food exporter Winha to distribute its product in China. Winha itself is backing the establishment of a new agricultural college in Deniliquin to bolster food exports to China.
That appetite now ranges from milk powder, to value-added Bird Saliva Nests, to beef – the first shipment of live cattle to China leaving Portland in Victoria in February – and even fields of South Australian lavender.

Hidden Facts of Bird Saliva Nest

Bird Saliva Nest is hardened salivary material secreted by the male birds of several species Bird Saliva Nest during nest building. The birds secrete saliva and use it as cementing material to bind feathers and vegetation together, and shape them into nests with attachment to the walls of inland or seaside caves. Often nest weighs 1-2 times the swiftlet’s body weight. It only supports the mother and the nestlings. The nest construction is completed in 35 days.

Traditionally, Bird Saliva Nest is classified both before and after processing. The commonly used classification of Bird Saliva Nest is based on the nest’ external morphological features such as size, shape, feathering, appearance and color. However, traditional classification of Bird Saliva Nest did not include the species of Bird Saliva Nest-producing swiftlet thus making the classification of Bird Saliva Nest inadequate and confusing. Additionally, further classification is based on the location of collection and the country of origin.
On the basis of shape, Bird Saliva Nest has been categorized into several types such as nest cup, nest cake and cracked pieces nest. Consideration of the size of nests gives rise to one more class of Bird Saliva Nest, fingers grade (unprocessed nest). In terms of the aspects of feathering, Bird Saliva Nest has been categorized into premium grade nest, second class grade nest and third class grade nest. On the basis of physical appearance, Bird Saliva Nest has been classified into grass nest, feather nest, Bird Saliva Nest. On the basis of colour, Bird Saliva Nest has been classified into white nest, blood nest and Hua Yan. On the basis of location, Bird Saliva Nest has been classified as Gomantong nest, cave nest, house nest and Sarawak nest. On the basis of country of origin, there are several classes – Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia nests.
Moreover, Bird Saliva Nest can also be divided into cave nest and house nest. Cave nests are mainly harvested from natural caves, whereas house nests are made by swiftlets in the attic of countryside houses.

Collection of Nests

Cave nests are harvested by local people via a complex system of management and ownership. The nest harvesting process is often painful and risky. The use of nest harvesting techniques depends on several factor such as the cave site, cave height above the ground or water bed, and some other related factors. For the collection of nests in some caves in Kakus, Malaysia, 3 fishing net is placed across the stream in the cave to catch any fallen nest. For the collection of nests built high on cave walls, temporary frames made from locally collected bamboo or ironwood are used. In low lying caves in Baram, Malaysia, nests are usually collected by hands. The nest collection seasons in Niah and Sarawak, Malaysia, last for 30 to 60 days, while it lasts only two weeks in Baram, Malaysia.
Collection of house nests is a relatively easy task but care needs to be taken of the birds’ comfort, and also skilled and knowledgeable workers are generally involved.

Physical and Biochemical Analysis of Bird Saliva Nest

Proximate and mineral analysis are some of the predominant methods of analysis for nutritional testing of foods. Proximate analysis represents the crude proteins, fats and fibres, moisture, ash and carbohydrate contents. Many of the food analysis methods in use today are procedures based on a system initially introduced almost 100 years ago. Proximate and mineral analysis is used for the analysis of animal feedstuffs. It involves the estimation of main components of a food using procedures that allow a reasonably rapid and acceptable measurement of various food ingredients without the need for sophisticated equipment or chemicals. Usually the analysed components are crude proteins, fats and fibres, moisture, ash and carbohydrates.

Physical Analysis

The physical analysis involves the determination of the contents of moisture, fibres and ash, and the protein profile of Bird Saliva Nest.

Moisture

The vast majority of methods for the determination of moisture are based on oven drying techniques. Even though these procedures are widely varied, they do not accurately measure water content, and instead measure the volatile matter. The moisture content in Bird Saliva Nest was 7.50 % as reported by Marcone. However, publicly available Bird Saliva Nest moisture content usually varies from 10-50%. It has been observed that some unethical Bird Saliva Nest sellers prefer to sell nests with higher moisture content in order to earn more profits. However, Bird Saliva Nest with high moisture content will be subjected to the growth of bacteria and fungi, which causes damage and browning of nests. With moisture content controlled below 15%, the Bird Saliva Nest shelf-life can be prolonged for a longer time even without refrigeration. It is noteworthy to state that it is impossible to maintain Bird Saliva Nest at 0% moisture content in cup shape as it will be fragile to hold its shape.

Fibres

Fibres are polysaccharides and lignin, which are resistant to hydrolysis by enzymes in the human alimentary canal. As per this definition, the dietary fibre includes non—starch polysaccharides, resistant starch and lignin. It is important to note that no fibre content was found in Bird Saliva Nest by Marcone, Saengkrajang et al. and Sarawak Museum Department.

Ash

Generally, the percentage of ash in food and food products is determined by weight loss after ignition at 525-550 °C. Some types of food matrices call for slightly higher temperatures and numerous sample preparation techniques are recommended for certain types of food products. Processed nests were found to have around 2.5-3.0 % of ash by the Sarawak Museum Department. The reports by Marcone indicated that Bird Saliva Nest ash content was around 2.10%. 5.9-7.4% ash content was reported by Saengkrajang et al in several Bird Saliva Nest samples from Thailand. Hamzah and co-workers reported 5.58-13.88% ash content in the Bird Saliva Nest samples collected from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Philippines.

Protein Profile

According to Goh et al, the molecular weight of Bird Saliva Nest proteins is in the range of 14- 97 kDa. This means the size of Bird Saliva Nest proteins is relatively small and the separation has to be carried out in a small pore medium. Basically, the pores of agarose gel are relatively large compared to polyacrylamide gels. In addition, many problems have been encountered with the use of agarose for gel electrophoresis. Agarose contains charged groups, principally sulphate and carboxylic acid groups. These groups interact with charged groups on the ionized macromolecules, especially proteins, and hinder their electrophoretic migration. Furthermore, the presence of anionic groups on the support medium leads to an electro- osmotic effect, which alters the electrophoretic mobility of migrating sample molecules. So agarose gel is less suitable for the protein profiling of Bird Saliva Nest.
Some of the reports by Goh et al demonstrated the use of SDS polyacrylamide electrophoresis to identify lgE in Bird Saliva Nest, which induces anaphylaxis. The authors also immunochemically characterized the Bird Saliva Nest allergen. The protein profiles of commercially available and fresh Bird Saliva Nest samples from Sarawak were different. The fresh unprocessed EBNs had more and distinct protein bands. These findings were an indication of the fact that commercial processing may have reduced the amount of intact protein originally present in the fresh nests.

Biochemical Analysis

The physical analysis of Bird Saliva Nest involves the determination of the contents of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals and amino acids.

Proteins

Different protein contents of Bird Saliva Nest have been reported. Du et al. [15] characterized the major allergens in Bird Saliva Nest using the combined technologies of 2-DE, immunochemistry, N-terminal protein sequencing and MS. The immuno—staining of the Western blots of the Bird Saliva Nest 2-DE separated proteins with the sera from allergic patients indicated the presence of a major allergen of 66 kDa. Initial searches of the MALDl—TOF-MS tryptic peptide masses of the allergen in the SWISS— PROT and NCBl non—redundant databases revealed that Bird Saliva Nest protein was novel.
The average crude protein content in Bird Saliva Nest has been reported by Su et al. [16] as 53.26 %, Marcone as 62- 63%, Kathan and Weeks as 32.3 %, Saengkrajang et al. as 61.0-66.9%, Hamzah et al. as 59.8-65.4/00, Norhayati et al. as 57.9-65.2/00 and more than 75-85.6% by Sarawak Museum Department. Several studies have been carried out in order to define the precise roles of oligosaccharide chains in the functionality of glycoprotein. Several glycoprotein functions have been identified but many are still under investigation. As Bird Saliva Nest consists of mucin types of glycoproteins, it can serve as lubricant and protective agent.

Fats

Fats are considered a subclass of lipids. The US FDA food labelling regulations define fats as the sum of fatty acids expressed as triglyceride equivalents for nutrition labelling purposes. Saturated fats are fatty acids without double bonds. Bird Saliva Nest has very little fat content. The average fat content value reported by Marcone was 0.14%, while Sarawak Museum Department proclaimed the fat content was between 02-03% by dry weight. Recently, the studies by Saengkrajang et al. on the Bird Saliva Nest samples collected from different regions in Thailand indicated that fats formed 04-13% of the total composition. The fatty acid analysis by Marcone indicated that the Bird Saliva Nest fat consisted of palmitic (316:0, stearic C18:0, linoleic C18:1 and linoleic C182 acids. The ratio between different fatty acids was dependent on the types of Bird Saliva Nest.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are a very important class of compounds that are known to form essential food as well as structural components of living species. Carbohydrates are commonly classified into monosaccharides, oligosaccharides and polysaccharides. Phenol-sulphuric acid reaction for carbohydrate analysis of both white and red Bird Saliva Nest was carried out by Marcone. The tests indicated that carbohydrates were the second highest occurring components (27.26%) in the entire nest with some differences. Additionally, it was reported that white Bird Saliva Nest had slightly more total carbohydrate content than the red Bird Saliva Nest. According to Kathan and Weeks, the carbohydrate component in Bird Saliva Nest consists of 9% sialic acid, 7.2% galactosamine, 5.3% glucosamine, 16.9% galactose and 0.7% fructose. The sialic acid is believed to be N-acety1-4-O-acetylneuraminic acid. A new, sialic-acid-derived compound was isolated from the acid hydrolysate of Bird Saliva Nest by IEC Combined use of MS, 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy established that it is the 4,8—anhydr0 derivative of N-acetylneuraminic acid, and in solutions it exists in two tautomeric forms.
A GC detection method was developed to identify the composition of the oligosaccharide chain within the glycoprotein in Bird Saliva Nest. This composition includes D—mannitose, D-galactose, N- acetyl-D-galactosamine, N—acetyl-D-glucosamine and N-acetyl neuraminate, which constituted the oligosaccharide chain. The peak-area ratios in GC spectrum for the five monoses were found to be fixed; therefore, the GC technique developed in this work was conveniently used to determine the various raw EBNs and their products both qualitatively and quantitatively. This method serves as a marker to distinguish between the fake and the genuine Bird Saliva Nest rapidly.

Minerals and Metal Ions

For the studies of metal and mineral content in Bird Saliva Nest, several characteristics unique to toxicants and nutrients need consideration. Therefore, a distinction must be made between necessary minimal intake and toxic overexposure in the Bird Saliva Nest. There has been no evidence of any metal found in the Bird Saliva Nest; studied for metal content. The presence of heavy metals in foods may be either due to agricultural processing or from contamination in the food chain.
Several metals have important biological roles within the human body and thus, are considered essential for good health. Such metals are frequently known as minerals. Fourteen minerals have been proved as essential to human health. These essential minerals include calcium, chromium, copper, fluorine, iodine, iron, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, sodium and zinc. Nevertheless, at threshold concentrations, a number of these essential metals become potentially toxic. Minerals are considered as micronutrients as they are needed in relatively small amounts and belong to two groups, the macro or bulk minerals; and the micro or trace minerals. Minerals are inorganic elements, and therefore, are not produced by plants and animals. Some of the minerals work as coenzymes, enabling chemical reactions to occur throughout the body.
Processed Bird Saliva Nest contains reasonable amounts of calcium, iron, and riboflavin. Marcone also detected sodium (650 ppm), potassium (110 ppm), calcium (1298 ppm), magnesium (330 ppm), phosphorous (40 ppm) and iron (30 ppm) in Bird Saliva Nest. White Bird Saliva Nest was found to be richer in calcium than red Bird Saliva Nest. All the red EBNs tested were found to have typically higher levels of iron. Some researchers believe that minerals found in Bird Saliva Nest are leached from the cave substrate where the nests are built. The presence of natural minerals in cave nests and absence in farmed house nets enables the former to withstand longer hours of cooking, whereas the later disintegrates rapidly when cooked. However, there is little published research on the minerals levels in Bird Saliva Nest.

Amino

Acids Amino acid analysis of Bird Saliva Nest involves the identification and quantification of amino acids contained in a particular sample type. Since Bird Saliva Nest is consumed as supplementary food, therefore, it is very important to study the protein quality of Bird Saliva Nest, which is determined by the amino acid composition. Su et al. developed a capillary electrophoretic method for the determination of amino acid profile of Bird Saliva Nest.
Eighteen types of amino acids were analyzed with identification of seventeen types including aspartic acid, threonine, serine, glutamic acid, glycine, alanine, valine, isoleucine, leucine, tyrosine, phenylalanine, lysine, proline, histidine, arginine, tryptophan and cysteine. Aspartic acid, histidine, proline, serine and glycine were found to be in relatively higher amounts than the other amino acids.
It was concluded by the authors that Bird Saliva Nest does not contain hydroxyproline and methionine. Besides, the authors did not carry out the composition identification of glutamine and asparagine. Kathan and Weeks reached a similar conclusion stating that Bird Saliva Nest is rich in amino acids. Seventeen types of amino acids were identified in Bird Saliva Nest, namely, aspartic acid, threonine, serine, glutamic acid, proline, glycine, alanine, valine, methionine, isoleucine, leucine, tyrosine, phenylalanine, lysine, histidine, arginine and cysteine. Besides, serine, proline, glutamic acid, threonine and aspartic acid were found in relatively higher amounts. However, the identifications of tryptophan, glutamine and asparagine were not carried out.
Newman after some studies on the amino acid composition of Bird Saliva Nest documented that Bird Saliva Nest is deficient in three essential amino acids, namely lysine, methionine and tryptophan. However, Newman’s claims were proved incorrect later on. Marcone identified and quantitated seventeen types of amino acids including aspartic acid, asparagine, threonine, serine, glutamic acid, glutamine. glycine, alanine, valine, methionine, isoleucine, leucine, tyrosine, phenylalanine, lysine, histidine and arginine in Bird Saliva Nest. The contents of serine, valine, isoleucine and tyrosine were found to be fairly higher compared to others. However, in his work, the analysis of proline, tryptophan and cysteine was not carried out. Furthermore, amino acid analysis revealed that white Bird Saliva Nest protein was substantially rich in two specific aromatic amino acids which are phenylalanine and tyrosine.

Quality of Bird Saliva Nest

Due to the fact that cave nests are made by free and naturally-living swiftlets, some people considered them to be more valuable than house nests, and, hence, fetch a higher price. However, in reality, cave nests generally contain more foreign materials and feathers than house nests. Cave nest are exposed to the risk contamination by heavy metals from the external environment. The texture of house nests is usually smoother as compared to that of cave nests. Besides, the house nests have less feathers and other contaminants in comparison to the cave nests.

High Quality Bird Saliva Nest Sydney

There are various types of Bird Saliva Nest products in the market. The current quality of Bird Saliva Nest is not verifiable and its quality claims are totally dependent on the personal validation and rationale made by the manufacturers. Generally, Bird Saliva Nest with feathers incorporated in the nest—cup is given lower grades. Good quality nests are distinguished by a comparatively large proportion of nest-cement with few feathers in the nest—cup. After personal observation of Bird Saliva Nest trade practices in Malaysia, the colour of Bird Saliva Nest is frequently used to grade Bird Saliva Nest. Red coloured Bird Saliva Nest, also known as red nest or red blood nest is thought to be of higher quality and thus, sells at a higher price. Unfortunately, due to this reason, the white EBNs have been treated with red pigments which are either partially or wholly water-soluble so as to give the false appearance of the red blood nest and hence command a higher price from consumers.
The ancient Chinese communities were traditionally of the belief that the red coloured EBNs were enriched by the blood of swiflets. It is due to this reason such nests are called “Blood Nests” and were considered to be more nutritious. However, it is also possible the area where the nest was built absorbed iron from its environment. Marcone was of the conception that the red tarracota colour of the blood nest is very similar to the colour of the purified ovotrasferrin in its iron complexed state whereas the white coloured nest is similar in colour to ovotransferrin in its iron non-complexed form.
Further, X-ray microanalysis reports revealed that the blood nests contained relatively higher levels of iron compared to the white EBNs. Thus, it is likely that the red coloured EBNs are produced via the oxidization of iron in EBNs. Mende suggested that the colour of the EBNs may be due to the nest positions. Besides the above mentioned reasons, it is thought that the colour of nests is affected by the food consumed by swiftlets, which makes the saliva become red naturally. Nonetheless, at this moment, the true reason and factors affecting the colour of the nests are still a mystery.
The quality of the nest has to be monitored from the moment the nests are cultured, sorted, processed and packaged. Judgment regarding the quality of nets merely through the appearance and location of the final nest product will surely be misleading for consumers. In order to produce better quality nests, the nest building or cave environment has to be very clean. Clean environment is very important due to EBN’s strong absorption capacities. The nests are often contaminated by lizards, cockroaches, Chick’s corpse, bird’s stool and heavy metals, man-made contamination such as pesticides, sodium alginate, starch re-shaping, paints and colours, dust, etc. and therefore, a lot of care needs to be taken.
Recently, there have been many reports of fake or adulterated Bird Saliva Nest made by adding several materials including fish skin, mushroom, algae, karaya gum, red sea weed, Tremella fungus, pork skin, natural plant gum, jelly fungus and egg white. These materials are routinely incorporated during commercial processing prior to final sale. Generally, the weight of the nests is increased from 10-30 % to earn extra profits. This is a strong offense as it leads to several toxicities in Bird Saliva Nest consumers.
The presence of nitrites in Malaysian Bird Saliva Nest is another issue of concern regarding the safe consumption of nests. The export of EBNs from Malaysia was banned by China on account of the detection of high levels of nitrates in the exported EBNs. It is being estimated that the nitrite and nitrate contaminations in EBNs were contributed by the fermentation process of bird soil and guano. Besides, the contribution of natural environmental resources such as atmosphere, water, and soil was also thought responsible for the contamination of nests. Nitrites are very harmful to human beings as they react with secondary amines and amides in the alimentary canal to form carcinogenic N-nitrosamines. Hence, it is a great concern to authenticate the purity of Bird Saliva Nest and regulate the law to inspect Bird Saliva Nest sold in the market to combat adultération.

What You Need to Know about Swiftlets

Swiftlets are insectivorous birds classified within four genera viz. Aerodramus, Hydrochous, Schoutedenapus and Collocalia. They form the Collocaliini tribe within the swift family Apodiadate. There are around thirty species of swiftlets mostly confined to southern Asia, south Pacific islands and Northeastern Australia, both within the tropical and subtropical regions.

Generally, swiftlets have narrow wings for fast flight, in addition to a wide gape and small reduced beak surrounded by bristles for catching insects in flight. Nature has bestowed swiftlets with the ability to use a simple and effective echolocation to traverse in complete darkness through the crevasses and channels of caves where they stay at night and breed.
Swiftlets are very aerial species of birds and spend much part of their life spans on their wings. They often fly at high speeds which is assisted by the morphology of their sickle-shaped wings. They have very small feet as is suggested by their family name Apodidae (meaning “feetless”) and are therefore, unable to perch. However, their tail feathers are modified which helps them to land on move on vertical surfaces. The plumage of swiftlets is either dull black or brown, whereas white or grey patches are found in some species, in addition to brighter chest-reddish throats in some others.

What You Need to Know about Swiftlets

Scientifically, Bird Saliva Nest refers to the nest of four species of swiftlets, namely Collocalia fuciphaga, Collocalia maxima, Collocalia germanis and Collocalia unicolor. Collocalioa Fuchiphaga and Collocalia germanis produce nests of pure saliva and thus called white nest swiftlets while the other two species produce nests with an admixture of feathers and vegetation, and are thus called black nest swiftlets.

Classification and Nomenclature

There has always been controversy regarding the taxonomy and phylogeny of swiftlets. Morphological and nest character in addition to the nature of prey, and echolocating ability have been used for the classification of swiftlets. All the swiftlets were placed into a single genus “Collocalia” by in 1840. Gray’s classification was used until the discovery of echolocation in swiftlets. Later on, Brooke split the genus Collocalia s.1 into three different genera, viz. non-echolocating Collocalia s.s., non-echolocating Hydrochous (comprised of the only giant swiftlet, Hydrochous gigas), and echolocating Aerodramus. However, in subsequent research works, different classification methods were used by different workers. All the above three genera were categorized into Collocalia s.1. By Chantler and Driessens and Salomonsen, whereas Chantler et al. And Sibley and Monroe divided swiftlets into two or three different genera. Most of the authors in the research papers on the investigations of the properties of Bird Saliva Nest, did not disclose which swiftlet species were involved in nest building. The reason for non-disclosure of the identity of swiftlets is the inadequacy of the system of classification as none of the methods is distinctive without enough information to be reliable.
In order to remove the chaos about the taxonomy and phylogeny of swiftlets, several molecular biological studies have been carried out. Lee et al sequenced cytochrome-b DNA of swiftlets, however, it was only 506 bp portion and thus several questions remained unanswered. Later on, Thomassen et all sequenced the cytochrome-b gene completely. But, the position of Hydrochous was uncertain due to the high amount of variation in cytochrome-b. Two years later, Thomassen et all further added two sequences to their original dataset of cytochrome-b sequences for finding the solution to the problem. The two sequences included mitochondrial 12S rRNA (12S) and nuclear non-coding Fib 7. The two sequences were believed to evolve more conservatively than cytochrome-b. Besides, the authors also sequenced cytochrome-b and NADH dehydrogenase subunit-2 (ND2) mtDNA of two speciments of H. Gigas and found that H. Gigas is the sister-group of Aerodramnus, which supported monophyly of swiftlets. In the recent past, Lin et all extracted and sequenced DNA from Bird Saliva Nest based on sequence of cytochrome-b gene in mtDNA. The authors successfully identified the genetic source of Bird Saliva Nest and its products. It was observed that Aerodramus fuciphagus was the genetic source of Indonesian Bird Saliva Nest. Despite the fact that advanced taxonomic methods have been developed, researchers often use the classification described in different times. More often EBNs are classified according to the place of origin. Until now, there are no standardized nomenclatures used for naming swiftlets as no consensus has been reached among the researchers on the issue.

Habitation and Geographic Range

Swiftlets are insectivorous birds that have a worldwide distribution except for the Arctic and Antartic regions. Swiftlets (Collocaliini tribe) are small swifts that are distributed over areas ranging from the Seychelles islands of the western Indian Ocean through southern continental Asia, Indonesia, Palawan in the Phillipines, northern Australia, New Guinea, and the islands in the south-west of Pacific. However, Bird Saliva Nest producing swiftlets are only found in Southeast Asia, in the aves in Adamman and Nicobar Island, Phuket, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Indochina. The main commercial Bird Saliva Nest producers include Indonesia (Sumatera, Java, Kalimantan and the Lesser Sunda Islands), Malaysia (including Sabah and Sarawak), Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar. Some Bird Saliva Nest producing Bird Saliva Nest colonies have also been found in Hainan Island in China and Andaman and Nicobar Island in the Indian Ocean. However, the produce of Bird Saliva Nest in these regions is relatively very insignificant.
In eastern Malaysia, raw Bird Saliva Nest is sourced from the caves of Madai and Gomantong in Sabah, the Niah Caves in Miri, the Jade Mountains of Baram and Dragon Mountains in Tatau and Bintulu. The population of the cave swiftlets in Sarawak and Sabah is estimated to be approximately 2 million birds. In western Malaysia, the main areas of Bird Saliva Nest cultivation are Sitiawan, Teluk Intan, Kota Bahru, Kuala Terengganu, Parit Buntar, Bukit Mertajam, Nibong Tebal, Kuantan, Muar, Taiping and many other old townships. However, there is still lack of scientific approaches to precisely estimate the number of birds in Malaysia especially in Sabah and Sarawak.

Bird Saliva Nest is an excellent restorative food good for any age or gender

Bird Saliva Nest can promote the regeneration of internal organs and brain cells, and nourishes the human body. Benefits include: moistening body heat, creating energy, boosting stamina, nourishing lung, controlling cough and asthma, etc.

Benefits of Bird Saliva Nest

Ladies
Improves metabolism and frequent consumption results in young, radiant and fairer skin.
Pregnant Women
Consumption will improve immune functions of the fetus and reduce physical discomfort.
New Mothers
Eating Bird Saliva Nest will help speed up recovery after giving birth.
Infants/Children
Enhances immune system, promotes brain and organ development, improves digestion and absorption of nutrients.
Elders
Clears phlegm, strengthens lungs, kidneys, spleen and enhances appetite. Contains antioxidant benefits - essential to achieving anti-aging effects.
Smokers
Nourishes lungs, clears phlegm, and stops coughing.

Chinese Medication

Bird Saliva Nest was used in ancient China as a type of restorative and remedial food. Previous clinical research have concluded that Bird Saliva Nest has a sweet and calm character. Bird Saliva Nest contributes medical benefits to lung, stomach, and kidney neural systems.
The Chinese University of Hong Kong conducted a scientific study on Bird Saliva Nest. It was concluded that the water-soluble protein of Bird Saliva Nest contains a Mitogenic Stimulation Factor and Epidermic Growth Factor which can:
• Enhance the rebirth of cells
• Reinforce the immune system
• Restore energy and stamina
• Boost heart functions
• Supply, distribute heat energy throughout body
Bird Saliva Nest is Rich in Protein and Other Nutrients
• Isoleucine
• Leucine
• Lysine
• Methionine
• Phenylalanine
• Threonine
• Tryptophan
• Valine
• Alanine
• Arginine
• Aspartic acid
• Cysteine
• Glutamic Acid
• Glycine
• Histidine
• Proline
• Serine
• Tyrosine
• Asparagine
• Glutamine
Bird Saliva Nest is 50% protein - vital for tissue growth, maintenance and repair, muscle contraction and oxidation functions. Proteins are composed of 20 amino acids, 11 of which can be synthesized by human body (non-essential), and 9 have to be obtained through food (essential). Bird Saliva Nest contains 18 amino acids, including ALL 9 essential amino acids.
Additionally, Bird Saliva Nest is composed of almost a third of carbohydrates. The rest is a source of fibre, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and potassium.

How to Choose Bird Saliva Nest

Size and volume
Due to its natural formation, Bird Saliva Nest varies in size and weight. Everything else constant, larger Bird Saliva Nests are more expensive. Size does not affect the nutritional values but wider nest are rare and there are more layers of saliva leading to higher expandability.
Color and purity
White nests have a slight ivory color; golden nests have a slight beige or golden color; red nests have a red color. When soaked in water, Bird Saliva Nests will expand and turn into a lighter color and the thread become transparent. The water used for soaking shall remain transparent. If the Bird Saliva Nest is extremely white and shiny, it may have been bleached and this will greatly reduce the nutrition content.
Taste and humidity
There should be a slight aroma of egg white when cooked. Storage for dry Bird Saliva Nest is easier as it can be stored in room temperature. If the moisture content of the Bird Saliva Nest is high then the chances of mould is higher, therefore it should be stored in a refrigerator or a cool place.
Price and trustworthiness
Price is dependent on the above factors. The best choice is to purchase from trustworthy shops with quality assurance. Unreasonably and extremely low prices may indicate that the Bird Saliva Nest may be chemically treated, which may have reduced the health benefits or even be harmful to your health, or not even be real.
Density and volume after soaking
Nests with thinner threads, fewer gaps and thicker layers will expand more after soaking. Bird Saliva Nest from different areas and types has different expansion ratios.
Real vs. Fake
Fake Bird Saliva Nest have the following characteristics.
• low translucency and is reflective
• bleach, fishy, or acidic smell
• tight body, glossy surface, no cracks
• hard, tough, plastic substance
• becomes sticky once soaked

Bird Saliva Nest Testing

Analysis Nitrate and Nitrite in Bird Saliva Nest

SaniChem Resources offers analysis of nitrate and nitrite in Bird Saliva Nest by ion chromatography (IC). IC is a more sensitive method where a level as low as 0.1 ppm may be detected. Our method involves extracting the nitrate and nitrite from the Bird Saliva Nest matrices into solution and analysing the solution for nitrate and nitrate and a few other anions such as chloride, sulphate and phosphate. Sample amount required is about 1 gram which should be dry as that is the export requirement. Each sample should be placed in a separate small plastic bag, sealed and labelled before shipping to our laboratory. Depending on our workload, the turnaround time is between one to five days. We also provide moisture content analysis on the Bird Saliva Nest for export quality compliance using Karl Fischer titration method and bacteria count test.

Bird Saliva Nest Testing

Why test for Nitrate and Nitrite in Bird Saliva Nest?

Nitrate (NO3-) and nitrite (NO2-) are naturally occurring ions that are ubiquitous in the environment. Both are products of the oxidation of nitrogen by micro-organisms in plants, soil or water and, to a lesser extent, by electrical discharges such as lightning. Nitrate is the more stable form of oxidized nitrogen but can be reduced by microbial action to nitrite, which is moderately reactive chemically. Studies have shown that nitrate are found in many types of food especially meat products and vegetables. In fact it was shown that up to 90% of human dietary intake of nitrate come from vegetables which may contain up to two grams of nitrate per kilogram of vegetables. Nitrite, on the other hand are generally found in baked food and certain types of vegetables at much lower level at 2-4 mg per kg food. However, about 20% of nitrate may be converted to nitrite in the mouth by action of saliva and bacteria and more will be converted in the stomach. The toxicity of nitrate is generally due to its reduction to nitrite. Nitrite may react with some amine compounds to form N-nitroso compounds which were found to cause cancer in animal study and thus are suspected carcinogens. Based on many studies, health regulating bodies such as World Health Organization (WHO) has issue the allowable daily intake (ADI) of nitrate and nitrite to a maximum of 3.7 mg and 0.07 mg per Kg body weight respectively. Thus the allowable daily intake of a 60 Kg human is 222 mg for nitrate and 4.2 mg for nitrate per day. The WHO allowable limit for nitrite in food is 34 ppm and under the Malaysian Standard for Bird Saliva Nest, the allowable limit is set at 30 ppm for nitrite.
China has recently adopted an allowable limit of 30 ppm (mg/Kg) of nitrite in imported Bird Saliva Nest. This limit had been agreed with the Malaysian Government recently. Recent study by the Department of Veterinary Services, Johor(a state in Malaysia) reported that most Bird Saliva Nest produced in Johor contain levels of nitrites in excess of the allowable limit. Their finding is summarised in the table below.
It is interesting to note that the percentage of uncleaned Bird Saliva Nest containing 0-20 ppm nitrite was 57% while 32% contained 0-160 ppm nitrate. Upon cleaning, the percentage of 0-20 ppm nitrite increased to 62% and 0-160 ppm nitrate level was 81%. Nitrate and Nitrite are naturally occurring ions that can be found abundantly in the environment, including food. Studies have shown that Nitrate and nitrite are found in many types of food such as vegetables, fruit and meat product.

Nitrate and Nitrite

Nitrite is often used as a food additive for preservation and coloring purposes and the prevention of bacterial growth. Although it is widely used to cure meat, nitrite, in the presence of secondary amines in food product or in digestive system, will be converted into Nitroso Compounds and can cause health problems, including cancer, if ingested in large amounts. However, Nitrite will not pose serious threats to human health if it is used in accordance with the standards.
Nitrate which always present as sodium nitrate is the more stable form but tend to be oxidized to Nitrite in the existence of bacterial activity and oxygen. Thus, both nitrate and nitrite must be monitored to ensure the quality and safety of meat products.
Nitrite in red Bird Saliva Nest may be formed naturally. Though, there are patches of circumstances found that a few sellers attempted to turn white Bird Saliva Nest into red Bird Saliva Nest to persuade customers who believe the blood-red nests are more nutritious thus increase the higher prices and demand from consumer for the red Bird Saliva Nest. Unfortunately, adulterated Bird Saliva Nests often feature excessive nitrite levels.

Heavy Metal

Heavy metal comes from an external sources. Swiflet birds travel around to acquire foods and drinks. During the process, there are a lot of possibility for the birds to bring along contaminant to their nests. Other than bacteria, heavy metal is one of a main concern among Bird Saliva Nest consumer because most of heavy metal is very well known to cause cancer.

Bacteria

Since swiflet bird made the nest using its saliva, there are very high probability for bacterial growth especially the nest will be going to be a place where the birds live which we can expect fecal from the birds to present. Because of that, hygienic factor of the Bird Saliva Nest is the main priority. Cleaning process must be done very thoroughly to make sure the Bird Saliva Nests are clean and edible without affecting health of consumer.

Protein analysis

Protein analysis seems to be unnecessary because protein is not the main nutrient aimed by the consumer here. Raw Bird Saliva Nest contain a quite high amount of protein. A high quality Bird Saliva Nest should contain a high amount of protein too.
Though, there is a research found that after processing, the protein level decrease so much due to the cleaning process by using hydrogen peroxide, H2O2 as bleaching agent. It does not only eliminate all the bacteria and heavy metals, it also removes the essential sialic acid, minerals, epidermal growth factor and antioxidants. Through protein analysis, we can confirm no bleaching agent was used during the processing and the nutrient level is preserved to the optimum.

Moisture

Some Bird Saliva Nest processor spray water to their processed Bird Saliva Nest for easier packaging. While the Bird Saliva Nest already clean, the high water content in the Bird Saliva Nest provide a good environment for yeast and molds growth. This will force them to use preservative to prevent the growth thus increasing the level of nitrite, which when consumed in high amount will cause cancer.

Introduction to Bird Saliva Nest

Bird Saliva Nest is one of the commonly use health-modulating foods in Chinese populations. In traditional Chinese medicine, Bird Saliva Nest is known for its beneficial effects in treating several ailments including consumptive disease, tuberculosis, asthma, dry coughs, stomach ulcers, gastric troubles and bronchial disorders. Due to food and medicinal values, Bird Saliva Nest is quite an expensive animal bioproduct, and has thus created lucrative industry in Southeast Asia. It is one of the main contributors of gross domestic product in several Southeast Asian Countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and others.

Bird Saliva Nest is the dried saliva of swallows / swiftlets commonly found in the Southeaast Asian Countries e.g. Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnamese. Swiftlets are tiny insectivorous birds that often keep on catching insects during flight from nearly first light until dark. Amongst the several swiftlet species in Collocalia genus, only the nests producted by Collocalia fuciphaga, Collocalia germannis, Collocalia maxima and Collocalia unicolor are commercially important due to their human consumptions.

Bird Saliva Nest is called differently in different languages e.g. Yan Wo in Chinese, Sarang Wallet in Indonesian and Enso in Japanese. The saliva secreted from the sublingual salivary glands of swiftlets during nesting and breeding season is the main material used in building of the nests. Generally, the sublingual salivary glands of swiftlets increase in weight from 2.5 to 160mg, and reach their maximum secretory activity during nesting and breeding season. Nests are built using saliva as a cementing material for binding feathers and other vegetation together. It also ensures firm attachment to the vertical walls of inland or seaside caves.

Grading of Bird Saliva Nest

The grading of EBNs is measured on account of their dry mass, the time spent by swiftlets in building nest, and finally the fat and protein content of hardened saliva. As an example, the white nests are almost entirely made from saliva, while the black ones are composed of almost 45-55% feathers and small dried leaves.
The bowl shaped Bird Saliva Nest is the most popular one in the market compare to other shapes e.g. triangle (corner nest), broken pieces, etc.

History of Bird Saliva Nest

The earliest history of Bird Saliva Nest trade dates back to almost 1000 years ago in China, during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.). However, some researchers believe that the Bird Saliva Nest trade can only be traced back to 1589 when Ming Dynasty ruled the ancient Chinese Empire. It is said that the Admiral Cheng Ho visited Southeast Asia and was given gift of Bird Saliva Nest from Indonesia for the Ming Dynasty’s Emperor. This is assumed to be the initial stimulus for opening the trade of these valuable nests.
During the ancient Chinese civilization, only the families of the Emperor and his ministers were privileged with the right to consume the highly valued Bird Saliva Nest. But, after the end of the monarchy system in China, the general population was introduced to Bird Saliva Nest. Because of the delicious, nutritive and medicinal properties of Bird Saliva Nest, its fame rose gradually and steadily among the general public.
Nowadays, Bird Saliva Nest is reputed as one of the most popular delicacies among the Chinese communities. In addition to the consumption of Bird Saliva Nest for health-promoting effects and nutritional components, most of the people consume it as mere delicious and nutritious food item.

Health Benefits and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

TCM has claimed a long time ago that Bird Saliva Nest has highly encouraging effects for the cure and treatment of consumptive diseases, difficult breathing, dry coughs, alleviating asthma, tuberculosis, hemoptysis, asthenia, improving voice, stomach ulcers, relieving gastric troubles and general weakness of bronchial ailments. Besides, Bird Saliva Nest is also famous for the proper and healthy nourishment of kidneys, heart, lungs and stomach. Additionally, it helps in raising libido, fortifying the immune system, promoting growth, improving concentration, improving skin complexion, slowing down the aging processes, increasing energy and metabolism, and regulating circulation.
The regular consumption of Bird Saliva Nest has been associated with healthy effects such as high-spirited physical and mental strength, and youthfulness restoration. Proteins are the main ingredients of Bird Saliva Nest. They are generally used for the building and repair of body cells and tissues, and driving other metabolic functions. Carbohydrates are another major ingredients of Bird Saliva Nest. Sialic acid is one of the major carbohydrates found in Bird Saliva Nest, which mediates the distribution and structure of gangliosides in brain. The essential trace elements such a calcium, phosphorus, iron, sodium, potassium, iodine and some essential amino acids are the other main and major ingredients in Bird Saliva Nest.
In the view of these facts, Bird Saliva Nest is highly nutritive and restorative food with sweet and calm character appropriate for consumption by all age groups of all genders. Recent studies have demonstrated Bird Saliva Nest as a potent medicinal substrate with a wide range of medicinal properties including antiviral, anticancer, eye care, bone strength, neuroprotective and anti-oxidant effects. Besides, Bird Saliva Nest has been found to potentiate the proliferation of HASCc. In addition, epidermal growth factor like activity has been documented for Bird Saliva Nest in several experiments.
Although Bird Saliva Nest has been traditionally prescribed to cure diseases for many generations the actual characteristics and properties of Bird Saliva Nest have not been studied in detail.

Target Market

At present, the main target market for Bird Saliva Nest is the Chinese community all over the world. However, Hong Kong, Mainland China and Taiwan stand out as the top consumers of this product followed by Singapore, U.S.A. and Middle East countries among others. Bird Saliva Nest is regarded as an esteemed cuisine by upper class Chinese families and highly appreciated for its health benefits. At diners in expensive Hong Kong restaurants, each bowl of the highest quality Bird Saliva Nest costs almost USD $30 – $100. There is a stable demand for Bird Saliva Nest from the restaurants. However, the demands are at peak during the Chinese New Year period. Bird Saliva Nest is usually given as a gift during this period as it symbolizes good health and longevity wishes for the recipient.
In addition, it is a symbol of status in society. Bird Saliva Nest has been a core part of Chinese tradition and culture for hundreds of years now. The increase of wealth in the Asian region, along with a big increase in the price of bowl of Bird Saliva Nest has made Bird Saliva Nest “the Caviar of the East”
Bird Saliva Nest is highly expensive animal bioproduct. The trade of Bird Saliva Nest in the global market has been on the rise for decades. It is expected that the demands of the Bird Saliva Nest will continue to increase irrespective of their low production.

What is Edible Swallow / Bird Saliva Nest

How are Bird Saliva Nest’s Made?

These nests are made from swiftlets / swallow birds utilizing saliva that have been solidified and prepared so they’re edible. These Bird Saliva Nests are treasured in Chinese cuisine as they are rare, delicious and have high nutritional content. These Bird Saliva Nests have different grading / types, and this is determined by the size and the cleanliness of the Bird Saliva Nest.
Colors vary, with white being one of the most coveted as it is softer than the other colors and provides many health benefits including promoting smooth skin. While these nests are just becoming popular in the West, they have been part of Chinese culture and cuisine for over four centuries, often as Bird Saliva Nest.

What is Edible Swallow / Bird Saliva Nest

Bird Saliva Nest and Other Dishes

While these nests can be used in different ways, they are best known as Bird Saliva Nest. As the nest dissipates in water, they become gelatinous and then used as an ingredient in soup.
In Chinese cuisine it is called the sweet soup or savoury. There are many ways to prepare the dish, and as per the Suiyuan shidan, the gastronomy guide of the Qing Dynasty, the nest should not be prepared with anything oily or other powerful ingredients as it is delicate. The dish is also prepared in generous quantities in order to best appreciate its taste.
Aside from its exquisite taste, Bird Saliva Nests can also be turned into ingredients in other foods and dishes. This nest for instance, can be used for the preparation of Bird Saliva Nest boiled rice, Bird Saliva Nest congee and prepared with rice. These nests can also be used as ingredients for desserts such as Bird Saliva Nest jelly. Bird Saliva Nest jelly is made when the nest is placed in a ceramic jar with a bit of water and salt or sugar, after which it is steamed.

Harvesting of the Nests

Various types of Bird Saliva Nests can be harvested, with the most in demand being the Aerodramus maximus (black nest swiftlet) and the Aerodramus fuciphagus (white nest swiftlet). Both white and red nests are renowned throughout China and the rest of the world not just because of their taste but a lot of people say they have benefited health wise.
The majority of these nests are made when the breeding season arrives. These nests are created by the male swiftlet and have the appearance of a light cup embedded to a wall. These nests are made from various salivary cement strands, and it is this mixture that provides the nest with plenty of magnesium, potassium, iron and calcium.
Back in the days these nests were harvested directly in the caves, in particular the caves at Niah and those in Gomantong in Borneo. Because of the high demand for these nests beginning in the 1990s, special structures have been used in their stead. To make harvesting easier, these nests are situated close to the sea as that is where birds are most likely to be found.

Supply and Demand

The United States and Hong Kong are among the biggest consumers of Bird Saliva Nests, and Bird Saliva Nests are very much in demand and can fetch a high price. Bird Saliva Nests are weighed in kilograms, with red nests usually costing more than the white ones because they are rarer.
White colored nests are dyed red by many manufacturers, but experts have a way of determining if the nests are genuine red. Real red cave nests are hard to find, with most located in limestone caves in an island off Thailand. Premium Nest only supply the natural red Bird Saliva Nest which is harvested from the high-rise buildings / houses.
Due to the high demand for white Bird Saliva Nests, counterfeiters have tried to take advantage of the situation. To combat this threat, authorities in various countries have started using RFID technology, using microchips on the nests with details about transport, packaging, harvesting and so on.
The huge demand for Bird Saliva Nests has led to a thriving industry in particular the Indonesian province of North Sumatra. The many bird’s nets harvested and prepared there are exported to countries around the world including Hong Kong and the United States. However, the majority of consumers are still in China.
The best Bird Saliva Nests are handled and processed in special facilities to ensure consistency of quality, with effects analysis and failure mode among the techniques used to verify the authenticity of an Bird Saliva Nest.
There was a time when this delicacy was reserved for emperors and royalty, but now it is available for everyone. Demand for these nests is greater than ever, to the point that it makes up 0.5% of the GDP of Indonesia. Globally it is now a $5 billion industry.

Bird Saliva Nest

Bird Saliva Nest is one of Asian Pacific leading Bird Saliva Nest brand.  Awarded for being a leader in the industry and a pioneer for the Bird Saliva Nest industry since 1998 in Hong Kong. 

What Is Bird Saliva Nest?

Bird Saliva Nest is the saliva produced by a special species of swallow called the swiftlet while building the nest. The saliva glues with other impurities (such as feathers) to form the nest. Among the different species of switlets, golden switlet’s saliva has the purest protein content and the highest nutrient value.

About Bird Saliva Nest:

Bird Saliva Nests are mainly produced in Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Burma and Hainan Province in Southern China. The texture and taste of Bird Saliva Nest vary with the swiftlet’s habitat. Compared with Cave Nest, House Nest is cleaner, softer and smoother in texture. So, the soaking/stewing time can be shortened. Cave Nest is mainly found in Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, whereas House Nest is mostly produced in Indonesia.
There are three harvesting periods of Bird Saliva Nest in a year -- the 'first phase’ (first harvesting period) Bird Saliva Nest is the most nutritious Bird Saliva Nest and contains much more proteins and minerals.
'First phase’ Bird Saliva Nest is harvested from November to January every year – springtime of Indonesia. In this season of abundance and thriving, the swiftlet grows up strong and healthy and is able to secrete plentiful saliva. Under such favourable environment, Bird Saliva Nest harvested during this period is purer and gets bigger expansion after soaking. The body of Bird Saliva Nest is obviously larger in size and thicker in texture.

The second and third phase Bird Saliva Nest is not as good comparing with the 'first phase’ Bird Saliva Nest in terms of quality and quantity. During these seasons, the swiftlet is weak due to unfavourable weather and lean food supply. Saliva secretion is slow and lots of feathers fall off, thus increase impurities. The Bird Saliva Nest is usually smaller in size and has lesser expandability.
IBNI has its own Bird Saliva Nest farmhouses and processing plants in Indonesia. Some time before every Chinese Lunar New Year, IBNI ships fresh ‘first phase’ Bird Saliva Nests to Hong Kong through air cargo. This guarantees sufficient supply of ‘first phase’ Bird Saliva Nests in the market all the year round.
Chinese have the culture of consuming Bird Saliva Nests traced back to Tang Dynasty, 1,400 years ago. It was told that Empress Wu Zetian used to rely on taking Bird Saliva Nest to resist ageing. Since then, Bird Saliva Nest had been frequently found on the upper class diet. During Ming Dynasty, it was officially included in the imperial menu. In those days, premium grade Bird Saliva Nest was among the articles of tribute presented by adjacent Southeast Asian countries to the emperor of China. It was commonly known as “Imperial Bird Saliva Nest”.

Learn About The Name Of The Bird Saliva Nest

I. Name by origin

Wild oats / in the cave: Two species of oats usually live in the cave is the fuciphaga (Popular called oats row) and Maxima oats (nest of black nest). But only the nest of oats row is known as Wild / Cave Nest in the market. Possibly because of the dangerous nature of taking oats in the cave, this kind of oats usually have the highest price compared to other types of oats in the market. Nest in the cave, with the natural conditions in the cave, usually shaped like a cup, thick body and hard legs. A cup-like appearance will help protect eggs or nest from being eaten by other animals and the weather. The feet of oats need to be hard to be attached to the wall because the cave is often high humidity. This type of nest is found in Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Learn About The Name Of The Bird Saliva Nest

Nest in the nest: Nest of the Esculanta oat is the type of nest often seen in the oat farms. Many people still think that swiftlet is can be raised but in reality we can only rely on construction techniques and design to lead the Bird Saliva Nest in the nest can not feed them like chicken industry. The raising of the nest requires a huge investment, time for the Bird Saliva Nest is long and especially not able to feed with artificial feed by the nature of wild Bird Saliva Nest and can only be caught in flight. Depending on the color of the nest, the nest in the house is often white ivory, the quality of the nest depends on the area to eat more birds for prey? The oats are of high quality, the oats are large and thick as the nest in the mound, the food of the birds are flying flies like mosquitoes, pests, etc., oats can be harvested from 1 -4 times a year.

II. Name by color

The reason why the nest of different colors is still a subject of debate. According to Vietnamese folklore, it is believed that the old birds or Bird Saliva Nest in the season of food shortage must use their blood with saliva to build the nest. This explains the red or pink color as well as the hatchability of blood nest compared with White Nest. However, many hypotheses about the temperature, humidity or diet of Bird Saliva Nest are still under investigation. In addition, when the nest is made on the red cliffs and the leaking water from the rock slits also create the red of the nest. However, this type of blood nest with the cliff has a water immersion equivalent to candy (ie 7-9 times)
Swiftlet: This is a type of oats are bright red color and is the most expensive among the colors because of the rare and high demand. Not all production establishments have this type of nest. And if so, the type of Bird Saliva Nest can only be harvested 1-2 times a year with very small. The number of swine and Hong Yen nest accounts for less than 10% of the total output in the world market. It is said that the red of the Blood Hyacinth is due to nesting process, Bird Saliva Nest not enough saliva should have used its own blood to mix with saliva to build nest.
Canary: Like Bird Saliva Nest in terms of price and scarcity, the canary is orange but the color can vary from tangerine to yellowish egg yolk. Darker the color, higher the price.
White oats: The most popular nest in the market. Each year can harvest 3-4 times. The number of Bird Saliva Nest (including 3 species of oats above) sold on the world market accounts for 90% of the total number of oats in the market.

III. Name of the concept

Bird Saliva Nest in Vietnam have hundreds of years of age and contribute not less to the revenue of local natural gifted nature. The Yen and professional traders are often distinguished by the class as: Blood (Red, due to nest nest position, the nest gradually turned to red) – (There is also documented that the nest is red because of the Bird Saliva Nest released in the nest. the best oat and the highest economic value)

• Pink (pink, due to Bird Saliva Nest position, the nest gradually turned pink)
• Quan (To, about 10g or more)
• Thien (high above, white nest, from 8-10g)
• Bai (Nest less than 6-7g)
• Geography (Located at the bottom of the cliff, black, dirty)
• Debris (oats broken by exploitation or transportation)

The Amazing Bird Saliva Nest

Bird Saliva Nest is not only delicious, but also according to traditional Chinese medicine, Bird Saliva Nest is known for the various health benefits such as immune system booster, help with digestion, anti-aging, increase libido, good source of protein, & to support the internal organs such as lungs & kidney. The ‘Epidermal growth factor’ inside the nest also believed to be able to help with skin regrow and remove wrinkles.

The Amazing Bird Saliva Nest

Eating Bird Saliva Nest is regarded as a privilege in China. It’s a luxury like shark fin. In ancient times only the emperor and nobles have access to it. So it’s a symbol of good taste.
Unlike other Chinese health foods which contains many types of herbs in one compound, the Bird Saliva Nest is actually created by swiftlet bird using its gummy saliva which hardens when exposed to air, usually in the caves or empty buildings. It may sound disgusting to some people but because of the health benefits and its scarcity, the demand for Bird Saliva Nests often outweigh the supply of the Bird Saliva Nests itself.

Processing the raw Bird Saliva Nest is a tedious task which requires skills and patience, it could take up to 1-2 hours to clean 30-40 grams of the Bird Saliva Nest before it is ready for consumption.
Bird Saliva Nest is also a delicacy in many countries other than Asia, such as US & Australia. The demand in these countries are increasing rapidly because of Asian’s influence but there are only a few dozens of restaurants actually served Bird Saliva Nest in these countries.
Most Americans and Australians, don’t eat it, it is mainly a dish they prepare for curious tourists who have heard about the benefits of Bird Saliva Nest.

How to store Bird Saliva Nest?

Bird Saliva Nests are best stored in a cool dry place and sealed in the original packaging if not used. To get the best out of the Bird Saliva Nest, it is recommended to soak the Bird Saliva Nest in cold water overnight before they are mixed with the ingredients you are preparing. The Bird Saliva Nest itself doesn’t really have a lot of smell or taste, the texture is like soften gelatine and jelly. Many people usually cook Bird Saliva Nest with rock sugar and serve as a sweet dessert soup.
Have a look at our Bird Saliva Nest recipes page for some amazing Bird Saliva Nest recipes.

7 Things to Know About Edible Bird Saliva Nest

Created by swiftlets from their solidified saliva, which are harvested for human consumption. It may sounds super gross. But before you completely write-off having edible Bird Saliva Nest for the rest of your life, you should know that these saliva-nests are rich in calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium, and plenty of other stuff that’s good for us. Plus, after cooking, it has a really strong egg white aroma that makes it smell pretty tasty.

Bird Saliva Nest (or Bird Saliva Nest) is one of the most popular ingredients in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). SSSmix1_900x600Here are some interesting facts about Bird Saliva Nest:

1. Edible Bird Saliva Nest is best consumed on an empty stomach.

It is recommended to consume Bird Saliva Nest on an empty stomach for better health benefits. But many people consumed it as a dessert or snack in the form of sweet soup as well.

2. The colour of red Edible Bird Saliva Nest does not come from the swiftlet’s blood.

Contrary to popular belief blood-red nests do not result from the regurgitation of blood from the swiftlet, the colour of red Bird Saliva Nest is caused by either oxidation, minerals absorbed from the environment or the diet of the swiftlet.

7 Things to Know About Edible Bird Saliva Nest

3. Men may use Edible Bird Saliva Nest to promote overall immunity.

Bird Saliva Nest has high glycoprotein content, growth factors and a neutral energetic property, which help boost a weak immune system. The benefits of glycoproteins are numerous. They act as blocking agents that prevent carcinogens both from attacking cells and from making changes to cells that have already been exposed to carcinogens. Many people make sure to include glycoproteins in their diet as a way to boost their immune systems and prevent or delay the spread of cancer. (source: Livestrong.com)

4. Edible Bird Saliva Nest is traditionally used as a beauty food.

Studies have shown that Bird Saliva Nest is rich in epidermal growth factor (EGF) which plays an important role in maintaining youthful, healthy skin structure and function.

5. Edible Bird Saliva Nest is believed to speed up recovery.

When Bird Saliva Nest is consumed in moderation, its unique pre-digested form of proteins and nutrients is said to aid recovery from chronic illnesses. Bird Saliva Nest may also help relieve respiratory ailments such as asthma or chronic coughs.

6. Seniors may use Edible Bird Saliva Nest to maintain and enhance their health.

Bird Saliva Nest is traditionally used to clear Phlegm, ease chronic dry coughs and relieve fatigue – common complaints as we get older. Bird Saliva Nest can also be used to stimulate the appetite, improve digestion and stimulate bowel movement.

7. Edible Bird Saliva Nest is a good supplement for growing children.

From a biological standpoint, Bird Saliva Nest contains proteins, amino acids and minerals that are essential for healthy development. Regular consumption of Bird Saliva Nest helps prevent colds and flus. By improving the function of the Lungs and Kidneys, Bird Saliva Nest helps boost the body’s immune system and increase resistance to external environmental factors.

Bird Saliva Nest in Vietnam

Consumers’ growing taste for nests made from swiftlet spittle gives ‘birdhouse’ a whole new meaning, but could it mean lasting damage to Vietnam’s ecosystem? By Lien Hoang. Photo by Lee Starnes.

After Uyen Vien injured his arm in a 2008 motorbike crash, he stemmed the lingering pain with a trusted remedy: the saliva of birds.

Tropical swiftlets use their spittle to build nests, and Vien used one of those nests to make a medicinal soup.

“I had a bowl once a day, and after a week, I felt better,” he says.
Seeing those effective results, he decided to construct a house outside Ho Chi Minh City where the birds could build their nests. By harvesting those nests and charging as much as $2,000 per kilogram, many swiftlet ‘farmers’ across Vietnam can make a fortune. It’s part of a larger trend around Asia, where consumers are becoming increasingly wealthy and increasingly attracted to such luxuries as Bird Saliva Nest.

But could the growing demand hurt the regional ecosystem?
Gathorne Cranbrook, co-author of the 2002 book Swiftlets of Borneo, says the domesticated birds (which live in buildings) are “genetically different” from their wild cousins (which live in caves). The birds can navigate in the dark and are very behaviour-driven, so those born in houses will grow up to seek out similar places in which to build their own nests.
As competition for food increases, the farmed swiftlets risk shutting out the wild ones, as well as other varieties of swifts whose slobbery secretions aren’t so coveted. In some ways this is a zero-sum game because of the so-called “carrying capacity”, or the maximum number of birds that the local environment can support.
“It is a disadvantage to the wild birds,” Cranbrook, a leading expert on swiftlets, says in a telephone interview from his home in England.

A centuries-old trade

Bird Saliva Nest is not a new delicacy in Asia. In the 16th century, and perhaps earlier, people were spelunking across the region to feed the lively nest trade. Cranbrook says Dutch merchants noticed this when they arrived at the time, especially in the tropical climates where the swiftlets thrive.
Caving could be a deadly profession; there are still reports to this day that people have fallen from ladders during harvests. In Vietnam, much of the industry officially centres on Nha Trang.
But that has changed in recent years, as skyrocketing demand pushed companies and individuals to set up brick-and-mortar homes for the swiftlets. Some build small dwellings just for the birds, while others simply add on attics to their existing homes to welcome feathered tenants. The taste for Bird Saliva Nest especially saw a boom in the 1980s.
“It used to be for kings and the rich,” says local trader Tran Anh Trong. “But now it’s popular.”
Shops that sell Bird Saliva Nest (to yen) have exploded around Ho Chi Minh City to cater to domestic customers, as well as those from Hong Kong, Singapore and China. Countries from Indonesia to Malaysia breed swiftlets as well. Bloomberg reported in August that demand is so great that it “is spawning a cottage industry that has attracted investment from VinaCapital Group Ltd, the nation’s largest fund manager, and helping mint new millionaires.”
Vietnamese who do buy the nests often do so as gifts to elder relatives. People consume them after undergoing surgery or giving birth. They’re believed to improve everything from digestion and libido to asthma and aging. Their actual healing properties are up for debate. Even Trong says it might just be in people’s heads.
“Psychology is very important,” he says.
Some Vietnamese don’t seem to mind whether the benefits can be proved, saying they feel better after drinking Bird Saliva Nest, and that’s proof enough. Still, a VnExpress article in January cited associate professor Ngo Dang Nghia as saying recent research suggests the benefits are real.
He said the drooly concoction helps generate cells so that ailing bodies recover more quickly, supports firm bone development, keeps skin looking young, and strengthens the immune system against viruses.
Unlike bear bile and rhino horn, Bird Saliva Nests comprise a largely legal trade because they don’t seem to harm the creatures involved.
But Jean-Francois Voisin, who co-wrote The White Nest Swiftlet and the Black Nest Swiftlet, recommends wild nests over farmed ones because they’re larger and more sustainable. He also warns against the indiscriminate use of pesticides, which harm the insect populations that feed swiftlets.
“Another problem with farm swiftlet[s] could be genetic pollution,” Voisin writes by email. He explains that interbreeding could result in a species that is less adaptive to nature, less productive, and more susceptible to disease. More field research needs to be done, but the Bird Saliva Nest industry is large enough to pose unintended consequences that won’t be realised until decades down the line.