‘Bowl’-Shaped Nests
The 'Bowl'-Shaped nests are the most sought after type by the bird nest consumers. It is also the most expensive of all the types as, compared to other types, they are bigger and thicker in volume; hence making them to have higher swelling capacity. The swelling capacity refers to the ability of the bird nests to hold water inside their strands upon soaking inside the water. The higher the swelling capacity, the higher the value of the bird nests.

However, not only do they have the highest swelling capacity, most consumers love to purchase this type due to the natural texture compared to the other two types; more specifically consumers love the taste of the thick and long strands of the nests.



 

Triangular’-Shaped Nests

The 'Triangular'-Shaped nests are created around the corners of a building, i.e. between ceiling walls. Although these nests bear the same quality and health benefits compared to the 'Bowl'-Shaped nests, they are less popular and hence cost cheaper. The reason for the price discrepancy is due to none other than the lower swelling capacity compared to the ‘Bowl’-Shaped nests.
The “Triangular”-Shaped nests, though not the cheapest amongst their types, seem to be reasonably affordable and as such, there has been a large increase in their demand, causing their price to surge considerably over the past few months.





‘Broken/Shredded’-Shaped Nests

The 'Broken/Shredded'-Shaped nests are the bits and pieces of the broken 'Bowl'-Shaped and 'Triangular'-Shaped nests which have been cleaned and sold separately.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
Broken as they are, they will not taste the same as the 'Triangular'-Shaped and 'Bowl'-Shaped nests. In fact, consumers from China & HK are wary of this type as they are not convinced of the authenticity of the nests; many have claimed that there have been occurrences that seaweed jelly or even pig skin have been used as substitutes.