National Farm Radio Forum

The program was praised for its effectiveness as a form of adult education, and for encouraging socialization and community improvement projects.

Provinces had previously experimented with sending university-educated experts to instruct farmers in scientific farming techniques, but this was considered to have been ineffective.

Before the Monday broadcast, members received a supplementary publication called the Farm Forum Guide by mail, which they were encouraged to read in advance.

Early broadcasts made heavy use of dramatizations, with actors playing neighbours on the fictional "Sunnybridge Farm", who would discuss the pros and cons of the week's topic.

[2] The show's success inspired a study commission by UNESCO, which resulted in a detailed and complimentary report published in 1954.

Though not the first of its kind, the show served as a model for similar community listening groups in countries such as India, Ghana, and France.

Examples included co-operative hospitalization schemes, fighting insect infestations, extending telephone service, and the creation of cooperative enterprises, such as credit unions, creameries, and mutual fire insurance.