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The US and UK relationship has been increasingly in focus, and more complex, since Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 US elections.

And as Mr Trump approaches 100 days in his second spell in the Whitehouse, uncertainty over tariffs, trade deals and the impact on UK farming remain uncertain.

Mr Trump's election victory brought a lot of questions for the UK, with many asking how the relationship between the Republican president and the first Labour Prime Minister in 14 years would develop.

Ahead of Mr Trump's inauguration, the US NFU laid out its priorities for the first 100 days of a Trump presidency.

Priorities included strengthening the Farm Safety Net by providing robust support to address volatility in crop prices and input costs and ensuring competitive markets including the enforcement of antitrust laws and greater transparency to combat the economic challenges posed by market concentration in the agricultural sector.

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It also urged the administration to be ‘measured and cooperative' when negotiating trade policy.

Despite overwhelmingly backing him, there was trepidation among American farmers as Mr Trump became President, particularly over tariff threats.

One of the President's first big moves was to appoint Robert F Kennedy as health and human services secretary, who vowed to ‘make America healthy again'. 

Brooke Rollins was appointed to head up the Department of Agriculture. 

The threat of tariffs dominated much of the headlines during the early days of Mr Trump's presidency. Grain and oilseed analysts, alongside other commodities, have been watching developments in the Whitehouse closely since January.

As concerns grew ahead of Mr Trump making an announcement on tariffs, the UK stepped up efforts to agree a US-UK trade deal in an attempt to protect UK trade. In the food sector, the US market is particularly crucial for Scotch whisky exports.

READ NOW: Everything you need to know about Trump's tariffs on the UK - and how it will impact farmers

Mr Trump dubbed April 2 'liberation day' as he announced a sweeping hike in tariffs for countries across the globe, including a 10% baseline on the UK. However, the UK tariffs announced were lower than their European counterparts.

The announcements caused major turbulence in the global stock markets, although agricultural markets were more sheltered from the impact. While disruptive, UK cheesemakers Barbers' which exports to the US said it was confident its customers would remain loyal but tariffs would have to be passed on to US consumers in prices.

However, one week later Mr Trump put tariffs on hold for all countries barring China, with China retaliating and a trade war developing between the two nations.

The increased focus on a trade deal between the UK and US has seen concerns about imports resurface, particularly in relation to chlorinated chicken and hormone-treated beef. 

Íæż½ã½ã and farming organisations in the UK have been clear they do not want to see UK food standards eroded in pursuit of a trade deal.

However, Reform UK politicians have come under fire from farmers by supporting the import of chlorinated chicken if it is properly labelled.

The Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been in the US last week to meet her US counterpart and did highlight her 'red lines' on food standards. But the US farming industry and politicians have been clear they want agriculture included in any trade deal.