Malaysia bird nest farming firm eyes Mideast markets, IPO in New York

The edible bird’s nest is created by a small bird of the swift family of birds found in Southeast Asia. The nest is made of solidified saliva, and the substance or its extracts are believed to be rich in nutrients that can help digestion, raise libido and improve the immune system. Highly popular in China, prices for cleaned and processed bird’s nests range from $3,300 and $4,200 per kilogramBy Arno Maierbrugger/Gulf Times Correspondent /BangkokMalaysia’s largest developer of swiftlet parks that produce edible bird’s nests, a precious delicacy in Southeast and East Asia, has ambitious plans to enter the world stage with its products and even wants to raise capital through an initial public offering in New York later this year. Kuala Lumpur-based Swiftlet Eco Park Bhd, which sees itself as a pioneer in developing eco-friendly swiftlet parks, said it wants to expand its product line and venture into markets in the Middle East and eventually Europe and the US by promoting edible bird’s nest as health food and using its ingredients for health supplements tailor-made for the new markets.The company currently runs or develops 14 swiftlet parks, 13 on Peninsular Malaysia and one in the eastern province of Sarawak. A subsidiary, Royal Bird’s Nest Sdn Bhd, produces and develops a range of products made with edible bird’s nest extract such as functional food and health supplements, skin care products, health drinks, coffee, chocolate and even chewing gum, all of them halal.According to Swiftlet Eco Park’s group managing director Loke Yeu Loong, the company wants to increase the number of products to 100 from currently 45 and venture first into Indonesia, and then further on to the Middle East. However, he concedes that familiarity with bird’s nest products and their health advantage might not be very high outside core markets such as China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. This is why Swiftlet Eco Parks plans to invest heavily in marketing campaigns abroad to market its products to a young, wealthy and health-conscious consumer group. A distribution partner could be Felda Wellness Corp, a subsidiary of Felda Global Ventures, Malaysia’s largest agri-business conglomerate also active in the Middle East.To fund the expansion, the company has plans to stage an initial public offering at the New York Stock Exchange in the third quarter of 2015, aiming at raising $30mn from investors. This comes in addition to Swiftlet Eco Park’s own farming investment scheme, the Edible-Bird’s Nest Swiftlet Ranching Interest Scheme, where investors can directly buy units of swiftlet farming operations in Malaysia. Loong also said that the company will invest more than $8mn in research and development with the focus on nutrition and medicinal properties of bird’s nest, its cosmetic value, methods of processing the nests, as well as new product development.The edible bird’s nest is created by a small bird of the swift family of birds found in Southeast Asia. The nest is made of solidified saliva, and the substance or its extracts are believed to be rich in nutrients that can help digestion, raise libido and improve the immune system. The nests are white and translucent and can be found wherever colonies of swiftlets are breeding, in caves, on cliffs or sometimes on a building. The nest measures about 6 centimetres and weighs about 14 grams. In Malaysia, commercial swiftlet farming happens in purpose-built structures, old empty houses or artificial caves. Highly popular in China, prices for cleaned and processed bird’s nests range from $3,300 and $4,200 per kilogram. In the Middle East, bird’s nest is not entirely uncommon, and it has been part of pastry recipes for a while mainly in Jordan, Syria, Iran and the Gulf states. The nests are mixed with nuts (almonds or pistachios), spices, sugar, butter and syrup and resemble baklava or kadaif pastries. The Fatwa Committee of the National Council of Islamic Religious Affairs Malaysia as early as in 2007 ruled that eating bird’s nest or food made with its extracts is permissible (halal).