Gyeongsangbuk-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services announced that all five participating teams representing Gyeongsangbuk-do achieved remarkable success by winning awards, including the grand prize, at the "2nd National Agricultural Machinery Challenge" held on September 9 at the Human Resources Development Institute for Agricultural Technology.

Hosted to enhance the agricultural machinery operation skills of female farmers and promote a safe farming culture, this year's competition brought together 120 participants across 30 teams from 38 cities and counties spanning nine provinces nationwide. Competitors demonstrated their field response capabilities and practical machinery handling skills through rigorous challenges.

Each Gyeongsangbuk-do representative team consisted of four members, with a total of five teams competing in core agricultural tasks mirroring real field conditions. The practical events included creating ridges and performing mulching using walking-type cultivators and ridge-forming plastic mulchers, planting corn seedlings with semi-automatic transplanters, loading combine harvesters utilizing hand signals, and driving tractors equipped with trailers through a challenging "reverse-C" course.

As a result of their exceptional teamwork and precision, the "Gyeongbuk T404" team captured the Grand Prize (Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Award). Additionally, the "Ham Haebokka" team won the Silver Prize, the "Makmugane" and "Yeongong Hogeol" teams earned Bronze Prizes, and the "Avengers 4" team received a Special Prize. These stellar outcomes were largely attributed to systematic pre-competition practice sessions and hands-on simulation training provided by the Gyeongsangbuk-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services.

Adding to the achievements, the inaugural "Farming Safety Runway"—a side event highlighting agricultural safety models—featured participants wearing appropriate work attire and safety gear to emphasize safety rules [cite:]. In this special event, Gyeongsangbuk-do's "Cheonma Mone" team also won a Bronze Prize. Participants noted that the competition served as a vital turning point to build confidence in handling heavy machinery while deeply internalizing the critical importance of safety protocols in farming [cite:].

Director Young-sook Cho of the Gyeongsangbuk-do Agricultural Research and Extension Services stated, "This competition served as a tremendous milestone for female farmers to boost their confidence in utilizing agricultural machinery proficiently and safely [cite:]. Moving forward, we will continue to expand field-oriented training and safety education programs to alleviate labor burdens and firmly establish safe, mechanized farming practices [cite:]."

To maintain momentum, the provincial institute conducts continuous, fieldwork-centered theory and driving practice programs annually. Furthermore, it operates safety training reaching approximately 40,000 individuals every year in collaboration with local municipal offices to prevent safety mishaps and foster a secure agricultural ecosystem across the region.

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