Clarkson's Farm star Jeremy Clarkson has described the Diddly Squat harvest as 'catastrophic'
Jeremy Clarkson has issued a statement on the fortunes of Diddly Squat following what he has described as a ‘catastrophic' harvest.
The eponymous star of Prime Video hit show Clarkson's Farm took to social media to share his frustrations and said: "It looks like this year's harvest will be catastrophic.
READ NOW: "Put British farming on the map" - Clarkson's Farm's Harriet Cowan backs #farm24 campaign
"That should be a worry for anyone who eats food. If a disaster on this scale had befallen any other industry, there would be a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth."
Harvest
Fellow arable farmer Ally Hunter Blair from Herefordshire said he shared Mr Clarkson's pain,' saying it had been ‘the worst harvest of my life to date'.
When asked whether the farm would be able to survive without the diversification projects of the Diddly Squat Farm Shop and Farmer's Dog pub, Mr Clarkson relplied: "Not a cat in hell's chance."
The star said the weather was mostly to blame following a severe lack of rainfall.
LISTEN NOW:
"It is the crops that have been disastrous. I planted 400,000 beetroot. Two grew."
As commentators pointed out Mr Clarkson's predicament would make ‘good TV', he replied: "Yes. But most farms do not have TV shows to keep them going."
BovineTB
The bad news is coming thick and fast for the former Top Gear presenter as he shared news recently that the Cotswold farm had been hit by bovineTB.
Mr Clarkson told his 7.9 million followers he was ‘heartbroken' to be told one of his cows, pregnant with twins, will have to be culled following a routine test.
"Bad news from Diddly Squat," Mr Clarkson said. "We have gone down with [bovine] TB. Everyone here is absolutely devastated."
READ MORE: Jeremy Clarkson's Diddly Squat to host Cereals 2026
Mr Clarkson's comments come as AHDB released its third harvest report of 2025, describing the ‘stop-start' nature of the harvest which has seen progress hindered by short spells of often heavy rain.
According to AHDB, the winter wheat harvest is 48% complete as of August 6, ahead of the same point last year (37%) and the five-year average 31%.
Yields
Wheat yields have improved as more crops have been harvested. Yields are averaging at 7.66 t/ha, which is 1% below the five-year average (2020-2024) in the UK, but 5.2% higher than in 2024. However, there is significant regional and inter-regional variability in yields, largely dictated by soil type.
Oilseed rape harvest is now complete, again this is ahead of the same point last year, when 93% had been cut, and the five-year average of 82%.
Yields of oilseed rape this season have been encouraging, averaging 3.98 t/ha across the UK, and ranging from 2.88 t/ha to 5.31 t/ha. The average for the UK is the highest since 2011 for the winter sown crop.
LISTEN NOW: Re-live this year's #Farm24 with Amy Wilkinson's podcast
Harvest is now underway for spring crops with spring barley 19% complete. This is well ahead of the same point last year (7%) and the five-year average (9%).
While initial yield reports for spring barley are promising, these are weighted to the east of England and greater variation is likely to emerge as harvest progresses.
