Photo by: LB Times
AMTEC hosts meeting of Asia-Pacific network for testing power tillers

The Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (AMTEC) hosted the meeting of the Technical Working Group on Power Tillers of the Asian and Pacific Network for Testing of Agricultural Machinery (ANTAM).

The meeting was held at the Roberto C. Bautista Hall on Pili Drive in UPLB on July 24-28, 2023 and was sponsored by UNESCAP-CSAM, ANTAM, Asian Development Bank (ADB), and UPLB.  

ANTAM is an initiative led by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific – Centre for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization (UNESCAP-CSAM). It aims to harmonize testing standards for agricultural machinery in the Asia-Pacific region.

The ANTAM Standard Codes promote the use of safe, efficient, and environmentally sound agricultural machinery in support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (http://antam.un-csam.org/).

Attending the opening program of the meeting were Dr. Marion Lux Y. Castro, associate dean of the UPLB College of Engineering and Agro-Industrial Technology (CEAT); Jeong Seong-lim, representative of the Korean Agriculture Technology Promotion Agency and ANTAM chair; Marco Silvestri, programme officer of UNESCAP-CSAM; and Noriko Sato, senior natural resources specialist of Asian Development Bank. 

Other participants were the TWG members from the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Nepal, Bhutan, Turkey, Thailand, China; Dr. Sandro Liberatori, ANTAM technical reference unit; UNESCAP-CSAM staff; and presenters from the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Agriculture Fisheries Engineering (DA-BAFE), DA-Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Standards (DA-BAFS), Department of Trade and Industry-Philippine Accreditation Bureau (DTI-PAB), and Thai Industrial Standards Institute. 

Also present were observers from Zantander Engineering, Super Trade Machinery Global, Inc., B&L Machinery, and Punjab Agriculture Department. 

Engr. Marie Jehosa B. Reyes of AMTEC and Engr. Mark Twain Limbo of BAFE are the current chair and co-chair of the ANTAM TWG on power tillers.

During the meeting, the ANTAM Codes on Mini Tillers and ANTAM Quality Manual were reviewed, discussed, and endorsed. Demonstration of the items in the Test Codes on Power Tillers were presented to the participants including the other testing facilities of AMTEC. 

Representatives from the Punjab Agriculture Department (Pakistan), Nepal, Bhutan, Korea, China, and the Philippines led the sharing sessions on the management of testing facilities and regulations for certification and accreditation of stations. 

Representatives from national government agencies also gave an overview of their office’s role and involvement in the development and implementation of Philippine national standards for agri-fisheries machinery. 

DA-BAFE was represented by Engr. Trishia O. Flores, while Dr. Gari Pellinor U. Hernandez and Engr. Joshua G. Villanueva represented DA-BAFS. The director of DTI-PAB, James E. Empeno, also gave a presentation during the session. 

The participants also paid a visit to the Rice Gene Bank and postharvest and mechanization facilities of the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Laguna; Metals Industry Research and Development Center in Bicutan, Taguig City; and the power tiller manufacturing plant of PI Farm Products, Inc. in Valenzuela City. 

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