British farmers are experiencing a catastrophic harvest due to extreme weather patterns. Jeremy Clarkson warns of relentless rain in 2024 and unprecedented dryness in 2025. The Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit indicates that production of key crops like wheat and barley could hit near-record lows, following last year's second-worst harvest. Farmers report increasingly extreme weather, with significant impacts on farming viability. Financial struggles due to raised employer contributions and minimum wage increases complicate the situation, with Clarkson noting that without income from his pub, survival is difficult for many farms.
"It looks like this year's harvest will be catastrophic. 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."
"The weather events are becoming more extreme, the distance between them is becoming more extreme, and we're having to adapt to that."
"The combination of a waterlogged winter followed by severe dryness was the worst combination of weather for our sort of farms. A loss-making year by some margin - survive and hope that next year is better."
"Without the income from my adjacent pub and farm shop, my farm could not survive. Most farms don't have TV shows to keep them going."
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