The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) welcomes news from the Trump administration stating they would pursue closer trade relations with the United Kingdom.

“We applaud the Trump administration for recognizing the importance of free trade agreements to American agriculture and the entire U.S. economy,” said NPPC President John Weber, a pork producer from Iowa. “We’re pleased that it will work for a stronger trade relationship with the United Kingdom through a mutually beneficial trade agreement.”

Trump and British Prime Minister Theresa May agreed to set up working groups to consider ways to improve trade between the countries before the United Kingdom, which consists of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, exits the EU. The so-called Brexit process may take up to two years.

It is unclear if Trump will continue trade talks with the EU. NPPC had been supportive of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), yet skeptical U.S. hog farmers would get a “good deal out of the agreement given the EU’s intransigence on eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers on agricultural products, including pork.”

“In pursuing better trade with the U.K. and working toward a free trade agreement with it, I think the administration recognized that TTIP isn’t going anywhere,” Weber said. “We’re pleased President Trump is instead focusing on bolstering our historic ties with the U.K.”