Clarkson’s Farms Kaleb Cooper admits he pays himself just 50p

2023-02-23

Clarkson's Farm: Trailer for season 2 of Prime Video series

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Clarkson’s Farm star Kaleb Cooper, 24, is a farming contractor who had never left his hometown when he was employed in a central advisory role to Jeremy Clarkson in the Prime Video series. Since then, viewers have taken him to their hearts as he frequently comes to the rescue of his irascible boss at all hours of the day and night.

The series documents Clarkson’s attempts at running a 1,000 acres farm in the Cotswolds.

He renamed the farm “Diddly Squat” to indicate its lack of productivity.

The fields were mostly arable, growing a rotation of barley, rapeseed and wheat which were farmed on a contract basis by a local villager called Howard, but he retired in 2019.

Clarkson then decided to try farming the land himself and brought in Cooper to assist him.

However, he is now stepping out of Clarkson’s shadow and has undertaken a farming enterprise of his own.

Having admitted his ultimate dream is to have his own farm, the entrepreneurial Oxford native, who has two children with his fiancéé Taya, has taken his first steps towards that goal.

He has purchased eight claves that he is raising with the hopes of making a profit on them.

But, speaking alongside Clarkson on the Apple podcast Performance People hosted by Ben and Georgie Ainslie, he revealed the shocking reality facing farmers.

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“When I’m working for myself, when I’m feeding my calves, I bought eight calves, it’s a little bit of a new business idea that I’m doing,” he said.

“And then you feed them on milk which costs me about £200 a calf and then selling them at nine months, trying to get a profit, trying to see if it will work you know.

“But, I worked out the other day how much my hourly rate is. I pay myself 50p an hour so then I can make money.

“But if I put myself at £10 an hour I don’t make money, I lose money on the calves,

Despite the challenges, he faces he hasn’t been put off his ultimate dream.

“My main goal is by far to buy my own farm, you know, and then that is where the dream is,” Cooper explained.

“The day I wake up on my own farm, walk out the front door and go ‘On that field there, I’m gonna plant wheat.’ Not because anyone tells me to because simply I want to.

“And then I can go right in that barn there, this year we’re gonna go and get some pigs …and I’m going to try and make money out of that. That is when the dream is complete.”

In October last year Cooper released his first book “The World According to Kaleb”.

Promos claimed that he would give his worldly wisdom on life’s big issues, from the difference between straw and hay to the importance of having a hair perm.

In it he shared his thoughts on topics such as capital cities, famous people and why farming is the best job in the world.

The tome proved hugely popular and became a Sunday Times bestseller.

Clarkson’s Farm seasons one and two are available to watch on Prime Video. The World According to Kaleb is available from Amazon and all good bookstores.