Morrisons is introducing Farmer Christmas to the nation with the launch of its Christmas advert, which follows two young friends discovering the other hero of Christmas.

The 60 second TV advert tells a tale about Farmer Christmas who works “all year too” in order to deliver a delicious Christmas feast to tables all over the country.

As British farming’s single biggest customer, Morrisons has chosen to hero farmers in its advert as a way of thanking them for all the work they do to help make Christmas so special.

Morrisons is also shining the spotlight on its colleagues - many of whom feature in the advert - and showcase the foodmakers in its stores and manufacturing sites who enable the supermarket to ​​make more than half the fresh food it sells.

The advert follows the friends as they explore North Pole Farm, where the festive food is grown, before spotting Farmer Christmas’ version of a sleigh and the ‘reindeers’ he needs to transport everything.

They then sneak a look into his workshops where ‘magic helpers’ including butchers, bakers, fishmongers and florists are helping to prepare delicious treats such as freshly made panettones.

At the end of their journey, the friends excitedly declare that “he’s been” as they spot a table full of food and sit down to enjoy the Christmas meal with their family and share their new secret.

The Christmas advert is part of the supermarket’s ongoing support for British farmers with other recent activity including the reduction of seasonal pork prices to help alleviate the pressures faced by pig farmers.

Morrisons also remain committed to only selling 100 per cent fresh British meat and using British flour in its bakeries.

Since the start of the pandemic, Morrisons has also offered farmers a five per cent discount.

As part of the Christmas campaign and to help tackle loneliness within communities, Morrisons is also giving away over a quarter of a million free Christmas cards for children to spread messages of hope during the festive season.

Morrisons Community Champions will be working in partnership with local groups and primary schools to deliver the cards for children to write messages on and colour in.

The children can post their cards to grandparents, neighbours and friends who they may not have seen recently due to the pandemic or give them back to Morrisons to distribute to care homes or self-isolating customers using its Doorstep Delivery service.

Rachel Eyre, Morrisons chief customer and marketing officer, said: “Told through the eyes of children, our advert reveals the ‘secret’ of the other star of Christmas - not Father Christmas but Farmer Christmas.

‘‘It aims to celebrate and showcase all the hard work, skill and dedication that goes on behind the scenes to grow and make the food for Christmas throughout the year.

‘‘From all the British farmers and growers we work with directly, to our 105,000 colleagues who are delivering, stocking, making and preparing fresh festive food, to bring our customers a Christmas feast for their table”.

The advert premiered on TV this week in ITVs This Morning followed by spots in The Great British Bake Off and Coronation Street on Tuesday night.

The wider campaign will run across social media, radio, digital and include in-store activations, as well as posters featuring its counter colleagues as Farmer Christmas’ magic helpers.

It continues to highlight the importance of valuing where food comes from and forms part of our Make Good Things Happen brand platform.

The Christmas ad builds on from Morrisons ‘It’s Good to Grow’ initiative, which educates children on everything from farming to healthy eating habits and Morrisons ’Make Good Things Happen’ advert in the summer.