Edible Birds Nest's Cleaning Process

This is sad but the truth is this. Edible Birds Nest contains very high soluble protein which helps in our epidemic growth and has anti-aging properties. However, most Edible Birds Nests available in the market are processed using bleaching agents, harmful chemicals and contain preservatives. Thus, destroying the precious nutrients - the soluble protein found in Edible Birds Nests.

We take Edible Birds Nest's cleaning seriously.

Each piece of Edible Birds Nest was cleaned thoroughly using only Reverse Osmosis Distilled Water. Other dirt and feathers were plucked out painstakingly using forceps. This is a long and tedious process but that is how we deliver quality Edible Birds Nest products. Right from the right harvesting methods to our stringent quality control, only can we ensure the most authentic and cleaned Edible Birds Nests safe for you and yor family's consumption. Your health in our responsibility!
Traditionally, the Edible Birds Nests are heated dry using an oven. This resulted in a huge loss of Edible Birds Nests nutrients after the direct heat.
At Company Edible Birds Nest, we use a "Freeze-Drying" method to dry every piece of Edible Birds Nest. This drying method is done by freezing water moisture and sublimate it to gas, hence all nutrients are able to perserved.
Edible Birds Nests are a good absorbent. Edible Birds Nests tend to easily absorb dirts and chemical elements from their surrounding. Thus, the environment is one of the most crucial factor that affects the quality of Edible Birds Nest. At Company Edible Birds Nests, we build our bird houses organically and use advanced technology to maintain the bird house's humidity and cleanliness. The unqiue design of our bird house is done to prevent the invasion of pests. Certainly, the Edible Birds Nests collected from our bird houses is definitely top in quality!

Edible Birds Nest's Cleaning Process

Edible Birds Nests Cleaning Process:

Premium grade and quality raw Edible Birds Nest were chosen in a temperture controlled environment to eliminate heavy metals contamination.
Next, skilled and well-trained workers were employed to separate the feathers and dirt using tweezers.
Using only reverse osmosis distilled water to ensure the cleanliness of each Edible Birds Nests and the natural shape of the nest is preserved as it is.
Stringent quality control are carried out to ensure the each and every piece of Company Edible Birds Nests achieved the specification set. Cleaned Edible Birds Nest were categorized according to its grade.

Hatching a plan for profits

Edible Birds Nests, which are made almost entirely of the bird’s own saliva, are a hot commodity in China where they are prepared in soups and known to have medicinal qualities as well as being an aphrodisiac. The Post’s Cheng Sokhorng sat down with Nang Sothy, president of the Cambodia Edible Birds Nest Federation (CBNF), to talk about how the local Edible Birds Nest industry has grown.

When did swiftlet cultivation in Cambodia begin?

In Cambodia, Edible Birds Nest cultivation began to really take off in the 1990s, during the UNTAC mission. After UNTAC mission finished, many of those serving from Malaysia started families with Cambodians and that is when building houses for the birds began. At that time, we also saw that investors from Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore were interested in the Edible Birds Nest market and started operating businesses as well.

When and why was the Cambodia Edible Birds Nest Federation founded?

The federation was set up in 2014 with 38 founding members. We established it in order to tap into the Chinese market because Chinese people believe that eating the nest will promote good health, make them younger and build up the body’s immune system especially for the elderly or pregnant. Additionally, the nest is an expensive souvenir that is given to family and friends.
The other reason we established the federation was so that we could share technical experience in building bird houses, or nests, for swiftlets in order to make sure that we have high-capacity cultivation and to make sure all the businesses don’t fail.

How has the cultivation of the nests changed over the years?

During the UNTAC time, most of the harvesting was natural by finding the nests in mountain caves, but this was very difficult work and a lot of the products would be destroyed by the journey.
So now we have switched to swiftlet farming and our current estimates are that there are between 2,300 to 3,000 Edible Birds Nest farms across the country that can produce on average between 1,000 to 1,500 kilograms per month of unprocessed nests.

What areas in Cambodia have swiftlet cultivation?

The geographical locations for nest cultivation are primarily in coastal towns and mountains in provinces like Kep, Kampot, Preah Sihanouk and Koh Kong. But they are also cultivated in Phnom Penh, Battambang, Kampong Cham and Takhmao city in Kandal province as well.

What is the cost of investment for swiftlet farming?

For the scope of investment for farming and warehouse processing, it is anywhere between $100,000 to $300,000 depending on the size of the facility, what equipment is installed and purchasing the land. Currently there are about 10 warehouses that each need between 50 and 100 workers to process and clean the Edible Birds Nests. The yield of nests is 1,000 to 1,500 kilograms a month, valued at around $600 per kilo. So the total revenue for unprocessed Edible Birds Nests across the country is never less than $1 million per month. However, for processed and cleaned nests they are valued at $2,000 to $2,500, with total country revenue around $2 to $3 million. According to Japanese experts that have analysed Cambodia’s Edible Birds Nest cultivation, we have high-quality products despite the fact that we are not as developed a country as our neighbours. The reason for that is because we still have good natural locations for the birds and strive for high-quality processing.

Where do the Edible Birds Nests go?

We sell about 30 percent to the local market and another 30 percent to international tourists. However, because we do not have official export status, there are a lot of farmers that sell to brokers, who smuggle the nests across the border into Thailand or Vietnam. But the fact that smuggling exists creates the opportunity for fake products that are trying to compete internationally.
For instance, in 2008 when Chinese authorities discovered that fake nests were being sold from Malaysia, the price dropped by 50 percent. And after that, China has been a lot stricter with import standards.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.