Birds nest: S'wak gaining at our expense
Published on: Friday, December 07, 2012
Kota Kinabalu: Uncertainty on the future of Sabah's edible birds nest industry has resulted in investors, particularly in the processing sector, shying away. "People who were buying our birds nest go to Sarawak. We are not protecting our own turf. The Government must come in because we cannot progress as long as we don't have a direction. "Sabah and Sarawak were once the main birds nest ranches at one time," said Sabah Swiftlet Association (Tawau) Executive Chairman Datuk Kour Nam Ngum.
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Met at the Seminar on Malaysian standards for edible-birdnests industry organised by the Department of Standards Malaysia at Pacific Sutera, Thursday, he said Sabah should have a main processing centre in view of its location as the centre of the BIMP-EAGA region.He also claimed that birds nest farmers were faced with licensing problems and hoped the Government through the Wildlife Department could issue the licenses."Holding back is not the solutionÉdoing so kills the industry," he said, adding that the State Government needs to support the industry because it is bigger than high value industry capable to generating income for the nation and eradicating poverty.Kour said the organising of the seminar was commendable since it would help the industry to grow.
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"Malaysia is taking the lead in this RM5.2 billion industry in the setting of standard of edible-birds nest but it we don't progress we will be overtaken by the Philippines and Vietnam," he said. Malaysia is presently the world's third producer, behind Indonesia and Thailand.
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He said the setting of the standard represented an identity, hence it was imperative for it to be adopted.Meanwhile, Chairman of the Working Group on Edible-Birdnest Swiftlet Ranching from the Department Veterinary Services Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Ministry, Dr Fadzilah A'ini Abdul Kadir said it was important for policy makers in Sabah to understand that edible-birdnest swiftlet farming has the capacity to help the poor out of poverty.Policy makers should not frustrate the industry but instead try to regulate it in line with the call by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak "Najib said to not frustrate the industry, but to regulate itÉhe has mentioned that this is a high value industry," she said.She said she had witnessed how birdnests ranching has helped several families categorised as poor to benefitted in Kota Marudu, Sabah.The families, she said, were now producing several kilogrammes of birdnests.Dr Fadzillah said edible-birdnests were high value products and were selling between RM3,500 to RM4,400 per kg."I am glad that this project has made the poor comfortable and the rich, richer. It is very important for policy makers to understand this," she said.She went on to explain on the habits of swiftlets and how some policies implemented by policy makers in Sabah seemed to be against the birds' wellbeing and habit.One such policy, she said, required ranchers to move their birdnests operation from their present premise to elsewhere."It is important for policy makers to understand that you cannot move the swiftlets from the premises once they built their nests there."Dr Fadzilah said based on researches swiftlets would continue to build their nests at the same building or premise."There were instances where the bird nest premises were burnt down. We saw the swiftlets flying into the burning building," she said.She added that hence, when the State Government policy makers create guidelines that orders ranchers to move their operations elsewhere, she deemed the directive as one made out of ignorance."When policy makers asked us to move the birds, how can you move the birds?...the value of one swiftlet in its lifetime is RM24,000. And you want me to kill the birds?" she asked.She also reminded policy makers in Sabah that they should not create and implement policies that do not make sense.Among them was to disallow having birdnests in mosques as well as barring birdnests premises within five kilometres radius from an airport, she said."The five kilometres radius is for international airports, otherwise, the radius is merely one kilometre away from the airportÉbut in our five years of study, not a single swiftlet has been hit by aeroplanes," she said.As for having birdnests at mosque, she mentioned that several mosques in Peninsular Malaysia had the swiftlets and the nests were harvested.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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