Minister to allow farming of water monitors, bird nests

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Chalermchai Sri-on plans to legalise the commercial farming of Asian water monitors and swiflets, whose nests are used for bird-nest soup.
He said on Tuesday that he would soon issue a ministerial regulation redefining the Asian water monitor (varanus salvator) as a species of wildlife that people can breed for commercial purposes.
“The Asian water monitor has the potential to be an economic animal. The skin is fine, soft and durable. It has a delicate pattern and has been used widely in the leather industry,” Mr Chalermchai said.
Water monitors would be the 63rd species of wildlife approved for farming,he said.
Businesses would be able to apply for licences to breed them and to make products from their skin, and they would become an economic animal, Mr Chalermchai said.
Kasetsart University had aleady done research on the farming and use of water monitors, he said.
The minister also planned to allow people to collect, commercially farm and possess the nests of black-nest and white-nest swiflets. This would help meet consumer demand for edible bird nests, Mr Chalermchai said.
Swiflet nests are currently collected only from wild nesting places, usually caves and cliffs.
The minister did not say when the new regulations would take effect.
Neither swiflets nor the Asian water monitor are on the endangered wildlife list.