THE NFU Food and Farming Roadshow visits Worcester today as part of its eighth annual tour of the country.

Setting up in Angel Place market, roadshow presenter Johnny Ball will be promoting British food and farming and aiming to show how much farming matters to everyone.

"We are portraying the role that farmers play in looking after the countryside - something they have been doing for generations - caring for the landscape that makes our countryside so beautiful," he explained.

"A new role for farmers will be providing sources of energy in the form of biofuels and biomass to help reduce the impact of climate change.

"As the supplies and cost of fossil fuels rise, there will be an increasing need to produce more sustainable forms of fuel and this is where farmers can play a huge role. In Britain, farmers produce more than two-thirds of all our food and look after at least three-quarters of the total land area.

"Farming is one of the mainstays of the rural economy - not just because of all the food the industry produces, but because our beautiful countryside is the backdrop for our multi-million pound tourist industry.

"The roadshow continues to be immensely popular with both adults and children and has a variety of children focused activities. You can meet and milk Annabel the model cow and have a go on the Friendly Farm Club website, where there are lots things to learn and games to play."

The roadshow's week-long tour of the country culminates with two days at the Town and Country Festival at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire, on Saturday and Sunday.