Bird spit coffee? Asia firms seek global appetite for China delicacy

Bird's nests are pictured before the cleaning process at a processing plant in Kuala Lumpur, Feb 17. [Photo / Agencies]

The company is also spending big on marketing bird's nest as a health food in the Middle East, Europe and the United States and plans to raise about $30 million through an initial public offering and New York listing in the third quarter of this year.

Southeast Asian swiftlets' nests are particularly popular in the Lunar New Year festivities, which began in China last week, and are believed to be rich in nutrients that can help digestion, raise libido and improve the immune system.

Malaysia is the world's largest producer of raw nests after Indonesia.