Vietnamese bird's nests exported to France

The first batch of bird’s nests and agricultural products from Hai Yen Nha Trang Company has just been 100% cleared into France. The batch included Nha Trang bird's nests, nutritional bird’s nests in jars, and Nha Trang bird's nest coffee. One hundred percent of the products were cleared as they met strict quality inspection standards of France as well as the European market in general.

After customs clearance, these products were present at an International Fair named "Foire de Paris", which was held in Paris from April 27 to May 8. This is one of the large-scale fairs in Europe. The pavilion displaying Hai Yen Nha Trang's products received a lot of attention from visitors.

To be cleared for the French market, bird's nest products must meet the strict standards of the host country.

Sharing with the press, Director of Hai Yen Nha Trang Company Tran Thanh Hai, said: “We have worked for quite a long time with the French authorities to create an inspection framework for bird’s nest products from the first stages until their arrival in France and the inspection finished products. To create products qualified for exports to the French market, the preparation stage must always be careful in every step to protect the quality and brand of Vietnamese bird's nests when reaching the international market. This is one of the great milestones of Hai Yen Nha Trang as well as the Vietnamese bird's nest market in general. I hope that in the future, Vietnamese bird's nest will be popular in France and the European market.”

According to Hai, products exported to the European market must meet inspection requirements from the stages of raw material purchasing, production, processing, quality inspection, packaging, and product conservation. To further increase the competitiveness and quality of Vietnamese products in the international market, the company has proactively created a close process of quality inspection and product testing and evaluation through reputable units before completing the dossier and sending it to the quality accreditation agencies of the host country.

“In order for French authorities to clearly understand the specific agricultural products of bird's nests, we proactively pioneered many stages and processes for quality inspection. This is a cautious step of the business in the process of bringing Vietnamese bird's nest to the countries and territories that have not had the habit or characteristics of using bird's nest in health care and nutrition. In addition to the products’ quality, the host country's authorities are also interested in many different environmental impacts and sustainable development factors during production. The successful export of the first batch of bird’s nests to the French market marked a new turning point in conquering 'difficult' markets for the bird's nest industry in general and for the company in particular,” said the director of Hai Yen Nha Trang Company.

Foundations for forming a bird's nest industry

Faced with the opportunities for opening markets, Vietnam has classified bird's nest as one of the special livestock products. Over the past 10 years, Vietnam has implemented many policies to boost the development of the bird's nest industry and the goal of reaching billion USD is not too difficult to achieve.

The country has 42 out of 63 provinces raising bird's nests with over 22,000 bird's nest houses. Vietnam's bird's nest output reached about 150 tonnes.

There are 42 out of 63 provinces farming bird's nests with over 22,000 bird's nest houses. Vietnam's bird's nest output reached about 150 tonnes. Since the beginning of the year, businesses have continuously boosted export orders as well as strengthened linkages and investments with people to develop swiftlet flocks.

Nguyen Xuan Duong, Chairman of the Vietnam Livestock Association, said that “It is crucial to consider swiftlet as a livestock animal that is legalised in the Law on Livestock. With the controlled exploitation, we can maintain and develop. The system of bird's nest houses must meet all adequate conditions and the bird’s nest products must be standardised and regulated. We must follow the standardisations and regulations to affirm Vietnam's national brand of bird's nests.”

In the near future, in addition to businesses allowed for exports, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will provide farmers with technical training to ensure traceability, food hygiene and safety and disease safety, towards meeting high criteria of the markets. With the advantage of 42 out of 63 provinces farming bird’s nests and favourable natural conditions, Vietnam has strong foundations to form a bird's nest industry.