Jeremy Clarkson has revealed he is likely losing £10 per customer at his new pub in the Cotswolds because of his strict business model.
The Farmers Dog which open its doors last month only uses produce from Great Britain - this includes even the less obvious seasonings such as pepper and salt - all in the hopes of further supporting British farmers.
However, this has left the former Top Gear presenter in a bit of a pickle as he quickly discovered the significantly higher costs for home-grown products. For example an imported kilo of black pepper costs £10 but the British alternative costs ten times more.
The TV star said he hoped to make a success of The Farmer’s Dog but added using only British produce meant that profit margins would be much lower.
Jeremy Clarkson has revealed he is likely losing £10 per customer at his Cotswold pub because of his strict business model
The Farmers Dog which open its doors last month only uses produce from Great Britain - this includes even the less obvious seasonings such as pepper and salt - all in the hopes of further supporting British farmers
He said using pork from his Diddly Squat farm would cost 0.74p to turn into sausage to be sold at the pub.
But if he used imported pig meat it would be 0.18p.
‘It costs us 0.74p to get a sausage into here, but if I buy imported pig meat it is 0.18. There is something wrong with the food system in this country,.’
As well as his financial woes, Clarkson revealed he has created a VIP bar at the pub, but it is just for farmers.
The 64-year-old former Top Gear presenter said that only agricultural workers were allowed in the upstairs bar at his boozer, called The Farmers Dog.
Speaking today, Clarkson - who runs the 1,000 farm Diddly Squat in nearby Chadlington, just 12 miles from the pub - said staff found it easy to recognise who was a farmer and who wasnt.
More than 400 people waited hours to be the first to enter Clarksons new pub
A board placed outside The Farmers Dog stating the everything inside Clarksons new pub is grown and raised in Great Britain
He said the guys at the upstairs bar had no problems with knowing who their punters were, adding: Only farmers (are) allowed in here.
Many asked how wed be able to tell…you just can.
He said, however, that when the pub opened its doors for the first time last month, he quizzed a bloke trying to get into the upstairs VIP bar.
Writing in The Sunday Times today, Clarkson said: On the morning of our soft opening, someone whose wardrobe was pretty convincing did go up the stairs.
His shoes, though, were wrong, so I asked him Whats glyphosate?*he said Weedkiller, and I let him past.
But Kaleb (Cooper) still wasnt convinced. How many acres are there in a hectare? he asked, the man replied Er twelve? - Out, Kaleb ordered.
There are 2.47 acres in a hectare.
People waited patiently for a taste of his £6 pint of Hawkstone beer or the chance to tuck into an £18 plate of sausage and mash at the opening.
However, one disgruntled Instagram user slammed the prices as sick and said: Really necessary to charge those prices? Absolutely ripping people off because its on TV.
Soap on sale in The Farmers Dog
A wide variety of Diddly Squat Farm products were on sale at a pop up shop in the grounds of The Farmer’s Dog pub
But Clarkson defended the prices and said: Every single thing was grown by British farmers, even the black pepper and sugar!
But buying directly from local producers and guaranteeing fair pay for British farmers means an increase in price for pub customers.
Hawkstone IPA, Hawkstone Premium, Hawkstone Hedgerow Cider, and Hawkstone Cider all come in at £6 a pint, a half-pint will set punters back £3.10.
Hawkstone Session Lager comes in at the fractionally cheaper cost of £5.50 per pint, which is the same price for a Hawkstone Pils, Hawkstone Breeze, and cask ale - halves of which are £2.90.
The pub also sells cans of alcohol-free Hawkstone Spa lager for £3.10.
Along with steak pie and mash (£19), other main courses include gammon steak (£19), sausages and mash (£18), as well as a vegetable and cheddar crumble (£15).
Puddings cost around £8 with both apple crumble and cheesecake on the menu.