Jeremy Clarkson is doing everything he can to raise awareness and highlight how farmers are dealing with mental health issues.
In 2008, the former Top Gear host bought 1000 acres in Oxfordshire that were previously part of the Sarsden estate.
When Jeremy, 63, retired in 2019, he decided to give farming a go but quickly called it Diddly Squat to reflect its lack of production.
He’s also being trailed by cameras for his show Clarkson’s Farm, which chronicles his efforts to farm the property.
Now, Jeremy has spoken out about the job’s expectations and difficulties, which are a major factor in farmer suicide rates across the country.
Farmers commit suicide at three times the national average, and three persons commit suicide each week in the UK farming and agricultural business.
According to a 2021 survey, four out of every five famer employees under the age of 40 named poor mental health as the most difficult difficulty they encountered.
‘How many farmers are literally on their own, absolutely on their own right now, on a tractor, and all they’re thinking is, “I’m going to have zero money”, and they’ve got a family at home,’ Clarkson said while speaking to The Daily Star.
‘It’s why the suicide rate on farms is just… ‘
Jeremy stated earlier this year that he was ‘losing sleep’ following a spate of ‘gut-wrenching’ fatalities on his farm.
During one episode of his show, he was shown sobbing as he sent his sheep to the slaughterhouse.
He later wrote in his Sunday Times column that he had ‘what feels like a hot cricket ball in the pit of my stomach’ each time he sent animals to be slaughtered.
‘I know that I’m trying to be a farmer and that this is what farmers do…but it’s not easy, taking seven happy, healthy pigs from their woodland home to their deaths,’ he said.
The broadcaster earlier stated that “nobody loves killing an animal,” but conceded that it was a terrible but essential aspect of the job.
Clarkson’s Farm is streaming on Prime Video.