Key mistake Jeremy Clarkson made sees him lose £10 for every customer eating at his pub

Season four of Clarkson’s Farm sees the former Top Gear star undertake one of his biggest projects yet: opening a pub.

This may seem an obvious next step after a farm and a shop, but the TV presenter has spoken out about how he loses £10 for every customer who eats at the pub.

This is thanks in large part to a key mistake that Clarkson made in setting up the pricing for The Farmer’s Dog.

The Farmer’s Dog pub: British food only

Clarkson bought a venue in July of 2024, with the series of Clarkson’s Farm focused on this purchase only just releasing this Friday.

The TV presenter and former motoring journalist decided to institute a strict rule at his pub, it would only be providing food and drinks that were made in Britain.

The pub only sells British made food and drink (PA)

This rule obviously led to issues, with certain items far more expensive to procure from British sources.

One example is that Clarkson has stated that getting black pepper is ‘ten times’ more expensive to acquire from British sources than to import from abroad.

He also compared the cost of butchering his own pigs to importing those of others, saying that his own sausages cost him 74p each, compared to 18p if bought imported.

This has led to certain items being incredibly high in price, with Clarkson even offering a £200 pie.

What mistake did Clarkson make which has led to him losing £10 a customer?

Speaking in his column for The Times, Clarkson admitted to making a key error.

Considering the soaring costs of keeping everything at the pub British, he said: “Now, a business-minded person would look at these costs and realise that with British-only rules in place, a hotdog was going be priced at about £45.

“But I’m not a business-minded person. So I just filled my heart with hope, asked an AI program to work out what the average price of lunch in a Cotswolds pub is and just charged that.

“It’s possible that for every customer who comes through the door I’d lose about £10.”

After going on to explain all the issues the pub had, Clarkson finished by saying: “We are getting better now, but I do ask, if you drop by, to remember this.

“Your lunch, if it arrives at all, is costing us a lot more than it’s costing you. So please be kind.”

The show’s fourth season will feature Clarkson alongside new farmhand Harriet Cowan and a returning Kaleb Cooper as they navigate torrential rain and attempts to expand and open a pub.

Clarkson’s Farm season four releases May 23.