Ho Chi Minh City
authorities have promised to provide people in outlying Can Gio District with
financial support to produce edible Birds Spit Soups, as part of an effort to
eliminate poverty in the area. Dinh La Thang, secretary of the municipal Party
Committee, suggested the idea during a meeting with leaders of the People’s
Committees from Ly Nhon, An Thoi Dong, and Binh Khanh Communes on Sunday.
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| Ho Chi Minh City to provide credit for locals to produce Birds Spit Soups |
Ho Chi Minh City authorities have
promised to provide people in outlying Can Gio District with financial support
to produce edible Birds Spit Soups, as part of an effort to eliminate poverty
in the area. Ho Chi Minh City authorities have promised to provide people in
outlying Can Gio District with financial support to produce edible Birds Spit
Soups, as part of an effort to eliminate poverty in the area. Dinh La Thang,
secretary of the municipal Party Committee, suggested the idea during a meeting
with leaders of the People’s Committees from Ly Nhon, An Thoi Dong, and Binh
Khanh Communes on Sunday. Prior to the meeting, Thang took a first-hand look at
how local residents live solely on the production of shrimp, sea salt, and
edible Birds Spit Soups. According to salt farmers, with the average price of
VND300 (US$0.01) to VND600 ($0.03) per kilogram, they can only make up to VND50
million ($2,197) a year, while production costs account for about VND30 million
($1,318). Meanwhile, raising shrimp can earn them a higher yearly income of
between VND100 million ($4,395) and VND120 million ($5,274), local residents
said, adding that risks associated with this aquaculture include bad weather
and polluted water resources. Only the sale of Birds Spit Soups can generate a
stable revenue thanks to their high price, about VND20 million ($879) per
kilogram. But raising edible-nest swiftlets requires billions of dong (VND1
billion = $43,955) in initial capital, local residents said. As over 50 percent
of the households in Can Gio…
Are Birds Spit Soups Vegan Food?
Edible Birds Spit
Soup, also know as cubilose, is a popular delicacy in Asia, made from the
salivary excretions of swallows. Instead of twigs and straw, the swiftlet makes
its nest from strands of gummy saliva along with other materials. The nest is
created to look like a shallow cup placed on the wall of a cave. The saliva,
will harden into tightly woven strands. The saliva is considered the cement
that holds the entire nest together, and the strands are interwoven throughout
the nest. Impurities woven into the strands must be picked out prior to
consumption. Once the nests are harvested, they are cleaned and sold as a
delicacy to restaurants and individuals for consumption. They are mostly
harvested in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the south of China.
“Can vegetarians eat Birds Spit Soups?”
In a span of 3 days, coincidentally, I have been asked this question 3
times. (1) By a FaceBook Fan who dropped us a message. (2) By a Chinese
restaurant owner whom we are partnering with. (3) By a Finance and HR Head of a
local IT company whom would like to engage us for our health talk.It is a very good question, and I’m pretty sure there have been debates on whether or not Birds Spit Soup is suitable for vegetarians. So, is it a nest? (which also means it is a non-living object) Or, is it an animal by-product?
Firstly, let us take a look at what edible Birds Spit Soups are made of. Edible Birds Spit Soups are made from the salivary excretions of swallows.The gummy saliva, will harden into tightly woven strands. The saliva is considered the cement that holds the entire nest together, and the strands are interwoven throughout the nest. Such salivary excretions is super rich in nutrients, almost 100% proteins and essential amino acids. The birds made their nests for the sole purpose of laying eggs in the nests, and they will abandon the nest after the chicks have hatched. After which, these nests would be harvest by humans as health/tonic foods.
Next, we consider the common definition of a vegetarian: a person who does not eat or does not believe in eating meat, fish, fowl, or, in some cases, any food derived from animals, such as eggs, milk, or cheese, but subsists on vegetables, fruits, nuts, grain, etc. In additional, the choice of being a vegetarian may also be influenced by either moral, religious, and/or health reasons.
An interesting comparison is this: Can one compare the saliva of the swalllows, or swiftlets, to say milk or cheese, which are also derived from within an animal? Or, should one view the nest as a natural object, which contains a high concentration of amino acids?
Depending on how one interprets the definition of vegetarian, and what is one’s reason(s) behind being a vegetarian, Birds Spit Soups (which technically is an animal’s saliva and not an animal’s body part) may, or may not be considered as vegetarian food. It would be up to the individual to consider the above factors, and form an opinion on his/her own based on their beliefs.
Just as there are vegetarians who consume eggs and cheese, there are vegetarians who consume edible Birds Spit Soups.
What are Birds Spit Soups
Edible Birds Spit Soup, also know as cubilose, is a popular delicacy in
Asia, made from the salivary excretions of swallows. Instead of twigs and
straw, the swiftlet makes its nest from strands of gummy saliva along with
other materials. The nest is created to look like a shallow cup placed on the
wall of a cave. The saliva, will harden into tightly woven strands. The saliva
is considered the cement that holds the entire nest together, and the strands
are interwoven throughout the nest. Impurities woven into the strands must be
picked out prior to consumption. Once the nests are harvested, they are cleaned
and sold as a delicacy to restaurants and individuals for consumption. They are
mostly harvested in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the south of
China.Birds Spit Soups are considered to be high in nutrients; especially proteins, calcium, potassium and other minerals, traditionally believed to provide a wondrous array of health benefits. These include aiding digestion, soothing sore throats, alleviating asthma, improving focus, and an overall benefit to the immune system.
Classification of Birds Spit Soups and how to choose Birds Spit Soups
Birds Spit Soup is a general term used to describe the nests of birds
belonging to the Apodidae family.The key categories for consumption are:
- saliva
nest (Bai Yan, being more than 90% pure saliva),
- feather
nest (mixture of saliva and feathers), and
- grass nest
(mixture of grass, twigs, feathers and saliva).
Some people thought that house nests are made or manufactured, OR, they think that the swiftlets which build their nests in houses are reared birds.
Not true.
Swiftlets naturally build their nests in caves, but it is dangerous, difficult, and time consuming for man to harvest the cave nests from very high cave walls and cave ceilings. Cave nests generally cost more. Also, the environment in a cave is less hygienic and cannot be controlled. More efforts are required to thoroughly clean cave nests.
So, man is smart. They started building tall airy structures, which stimulate the conditions in a cave, in the natural habitat of the swiftlets. To attract the birds to come into these houses to build their nests. The environment in these houses are much cleaner than in a cave and can be controlled. Which also means, better quality and larger nests can be harvested from bird houses, and at a lower cost too.
Saliva nests come in the colours blood red, orange, yellow and white, generally depending on the colour of the natural food which the bird consumes everyday. Therefore, the colour of the Birds Spit Soups is not necessarily an indication of their nutritional values. White nests, being “young nests” made from pure fresh saliva of the birds, are a common type of house nests that are harvested in the early stages of the life cycle of the Birds Spit Soups.
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