BBC Countryfile star dealt devastating blow minutes into show

Farmers Robert and Laura shared their bad news (Image: BBC)

A Countryfile participant was dealt a huge blow minutes into the BBC show today.

The episode focused on harvesting crops as Autumn comes around, with the show heading to a farm in Colchester, Essex, where they harvest potatoes. However, they were quick to reveal it's been a tough time for them.

A voiceover shared: "It's been a tough time for potato farmers across the UK. Too much rain in some areas, too little rain in other areas, coupled with rising cost of fertiliser has meant harvests have been hit hard this year. So how are they getting on?"

The show then crossed to the farmers, who explained how things had gone for them so far.

"In total, we farm an area of around three and a half thousand acres," Robert explained, as Laura admitted it was a very "stressful" job at times. She said: "We're constantly looking at the weather."

He shared: "Now you're on a race against the clock and the weather before it turns. The only way we can mitigate that is to have the capacity to rush that when the weather is good but we have to invest for that."

This costs more for the pair, but it is the best way for them to secure a good crop and thus a healthy income.

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Robert was hoping his crop was ready (Image: BBC)

Later, they headed back to the farm to test whether the machines were able to harvest the crops and got some bad news.

Robert explained: "March, April and May were very wet so that delayed the planting and delayed the harvest. A crop of potatoes being very intensive is around £4,000 per acres to grow. If you compared that to wheat, that's £500 an acre. It's quite a leap. You can soon find yourself in a loss making business. Potatoes has become a very high risk crop."

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75 to 80 per cent of the crop was already out the ground, but the farm workers gave some unwelcome news - the field is too wet to harvest - and thus they couldn't get the crop up.

The farm was too muddy (Image: BBC) SUBSCRIBE Invalid email

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"We're gonna move 40 minutes down the road and try again," he explained, describing how the trailers couldn't move through the mud. Robert felt "frustrated" by the change in the weather but it wasn't an "unsuprising" encounter, given the delay in planting.

As well as growing potatoes, the farm also create crisps in a bid to keep their income steady throughout the year.

*Countryfile airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer

BBC Countryfile star dealt devastating blow minutes into show

BBC Countryfile star dealt devastating blow minutes into show

BBC Countryfile star dealt devastating blow minutes into show

BBC Countryfile star dealt devastating blow minutes into show

BBC Countryfile star dealt devastating blow minutes into show