Australian Year of the Farmer managing director Geoff Bell said the city and country needed each other and he wanted to make sure Australia knew it.

“This is the first time anything like this has been done – telling the positive stories about farming so city people can understand what is going on out there in more detail than they do now,” he said.

“Essentially it is a year of celebration of the vital role farmers play in feeding, clothing and housing all of us, and that is the greatest story that has never been told.”

Victorian Farmers Federation president Andrew Broad said he hoped the focus would help Victorians better understand how their food was produced.

“It is really to highlight more to the metropolitan people the value of the farming community – to point out to them that there are people growing their food, people who take a real pride in doing it, and we can’t take these people for granted,” he said.

Mr Broad said farmers would not see a lot happening in their local communities for Year of the Farmer but events and media coverage in the city would help it to become a “self-fulfilling prophecy”.

“Anything like this that jolts people’s conscious about where there food comes from is a good innovation,” he said.

Victorian Agriculture and Food Security Minister Peter Walsh said Victorian farmers were recognised as having adopted world-class standards of environmental and animal welfare management.

“Australian Year of the Farmer presents an opportunity for all Victorians to be able to experience some of the innovation and creativeness that makes our farming sector so internationally successful,” he said.

Mr Bell said agriculture and all related businesses made about $405 million annually and was 27 per cent of Australia’s gross product.

A nine-vehicle roadshow will travel around the country over the next 12 months, attending existing events in both country and metropolitan areas.