Britain faces beer shortage after heatwave summer hammered barley harvest, Jeremy Clarkson's partner Lisa Hogan warns

Britain is facing a crippling beer shortage after a summer of heatwaves has hammered the barley harvest, Jeremy Clarkson's partner Lisa Hogan has warned.Extreme temperatures over the past four months has led to poor yields that are threatening not just the quantity of beer produced, but also the quality. Ms Hogan – who runs Diddly Squat Farm in Oxfordshire with the former Top Gear star – suggested higher prices might also be on the way as suppliers struggle to satisfy demand. She said: 'It is a struggle because if you have another bad harvest, you won't be able to supplement, say, by getting grain in from Poland. 'So we just have to pay a higher cost, and then we have to try not to pass that on to the customer. But you know, there'll be lean times, and then there'll be times of feast.' A summer of droughts left farmers scrambling to get water onto their land. This affected barley production, which is needed to make malt – a vital ingredient in beerSome 1.7million tons of barley are used in Britain's brewing, malting and distilling industries every year.Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit figures show the total UK harvest plummeted to one of its lowest yields on record at just over 19million tons, down from almost 26million in 2022. Jeremy Clarkson with partner Lisa Hogan at the National Television Awards earlier this week. Ms Hogan warned Britain is facing a crippling beer shortage after a summer of heatwaves Ms Hogan – who runs Diddly Squat Farm in Oxfordshire with the former Top Gear star – suggested higher prices might be on the way as suppliers struggle to satisfy demandThese figures were 19 per cent below the five-year average last month, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board.While last year's high temperatures also slashed the quantity of beer produced, Ms Hogan said the quality actually increased – although this is not expected this year. All this is bad news for Clarkson and his partner whose Hawkstone beer continues to soar in popularity, recording £44.9million in sales in the year to March.It can now be found on supermarket shelves as well as in 4,000 pubs across the country, including the TV presenter's own Farmer's Dog in Oxfordshire. Ms Hogan said she and Clarkson had been searching for solutions after the water supply to their farm collapsed.'You can't take everything from the streams, and then if it goes dry, you're buggered,' she told The Telegraph. 'So we managed our water really carefully, but to have reservoirs will make a huge difference across the land.'The farmer praised the Government after it announced plans facilitating the building of reservoirs, boosting access to water during periods of prolonged dry weather.In contrast, Clarkson was scathing in his judgment of Andy Burnham, who he anticipated would preside over a 'very unhelpful government'. The pair have been in a relationship since 2017, after they met at a Christmas party, and co-founded Diddly Squat several years later. Last month Clarkson said the harvest at Diddly Squat was 'f*****' due to the scorching summer.The farm and pub owner posted a screenshot of the BBC weather forecast for nearby Chipping Norton showing a high of 29C (84F) to Instagram with the caption: 'Harvest already f*****. May as well just enjoy it now.'Filming has started for a sixth series in recent months and it does appear likely that the focus will be on the record-breaking weather this year and the challenge it has posed for farmers.The 1,000-acre farm has previously produced traditional crops including wheat, barley and rapeseed alongside potatoes, mustard and clover.But Clarkson said earlier in the summer that he had deliberately left 200 acres uncropped this year because planting wheat or barley would have guaranteed financial losses.He warned it was becoming 'quite simply impossible' to make money from growing food and warned more farmers could be left with little choice but to use their land for other means.It comes as thieves swiped 11 of Clarkson's sheep at Diddly Squat earlier this month. Police are investigating the theft at the Cotswolds property – with the former Top Gear presenter demanding the return of the animals and warning thieves against any further raids, saying: 'We're armed.'Clarkson found out about the suspected late-night raid when he went to count his flock with co-star Kaleb Cooper.They discovered that only 16 of his 27 easycare breed sheep were in the remote Cotswolds field. Clarkson said 11 of his easycare breed sheep have been stolen from Diddly SquatClarkson spoke of his anger at the theft, telling The Sun: 'It's a farm. We're armed. Just so they know.' He added: 'It p***** me off. Honestly, it just p***** me off.'He said the sheep were worth more than £2,000 at market with lambs worth up to £8,000 for meat – and added that he was now worried that other livestock might have been stolen from the farm.Clarkson believes the sheep, which were featured on series five of his Amazon Prime show, were taken at night or on a day when camera crews were not present.Asked whether he believed the show had made the farm a target, he said: 'It's more likely to make you a target than less but I still don't think they've been stolen because they're on Diddly Squat. How can you [stop it] if someone's determined to steal your livestock?'