Clarkson warns farm pressures are 'relentless' after 'terrible' year

British farmers are facing “relentless” pressure from bad weather, rising energy costs, taxation and global instability, Jeremy Clarkson has warned after describing a “terrible” year for agriculture.

The Clarkson’s Farm presenter said farming had become “very, very difficult” as businesses contend with pressures coming from several directions at once.

Speaking alongside land agent Charlie Ireland at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham on Monday (5 October), Clarkson said poor weather had contributed to disappointing results on his own Cotswolds farm.

“It’s terrible, is the only way of describing it,” he told delegates.

“We worked really hard all year and we ended up with, I think I’m right in saying, three ounces of hen food.

“It was an absolute disaster on the farming side but, I mean, luckily we’ve got other projects going on now. But the farming is very, very difficult – very, very difficult at the moment.”

Clarkson acknowledged that his television, newspaper and other business interests meant he was in a different financial position from many working farmers.

“I’m very fortunate that I do have other income streams and newspaper columns, but if you’re an ordinary farmer, it’s not just the weather,” he said.

He pointed to international conflicts, taxes and energy costs as among the wider pressures facing agricultural businesses.

“Remember, it’s as Charlie was saying, the attacks come from everywhere – whether it’s Iran or Ukraine or taxes or energy costs – whatever it might be, it’s just relentless.”

Clarkson has also been a prominent critic of changes to inheritance tax affecting family farms and was heavily involved in the farming industry’s campaign against the policy.

The plans were subsequently watered down in December 2025 following vocal opposition from farmers and pressure from some Labour MPs representing rural constituencies.

Clarkson also used his appearance to criticise the wider business environment in Britain.

He said he was considering opening another pub alongside The Farmer’s Dog, near his farm, but joked that his next venture might be overseas.

“It’s not going to be in the UK. Why would anybody set up a business in this country right now?” he said.

Despite his assessment of the latest farming year, Clarkson said he remained optimistic about the industry’s longer-term future.

The discussion also turned to water management, with Ireland calling for Britain to take a more joined-up approach to capturing and storing rainfall.

“We seem to get a lot in a short period during the winter, which flows to the sea, which it’s meant to do, but we could capture some of that perfectly sensibly,” he said.

“Storing that is a real problem at the moment.”

Ireland also warned that weakening farming and rural businesses could have wider consequences for communities and the countryside.

Clarkson argued that farmers should ultimately be given greater freedom to manage the land.

“If you just left us alone, I’m pretty sure the countryside would be a lot better than it is now,” he said.