There’s little doubt that Instagram is the social media platform of choice for food wholesalers. It’s practically made for food photos and videos that make you hungry – the perfect place to showcase fresh products and industry expertise.Â
Many food suppliers use it brilliantly, showing the people behind the business and the chefs and venues they serve. Platforms like Top Jaw and Secondz have built huge audiences, in the main by speaking with chefs and then sharing what they think.Â
But, for many wholesale food suppliers, Instagram can be a bit of an afterthought. This is a huge missed opportunity!Â
So, to help get you started – or to build on what you are already doing – here are 5 Instagram tips for food wholesalers who can invest as little as 5 minutes each day.
Tip #1: Record video snippets while you work
We know how busy the life of a food supplier can be. With a million things to do, posting online can easily fall off the agenda.
So this tip is about capturing 3-5 second bursts of video content while you work. If you’re walking through the warehouse, pull out your phone and show off the great products you stock. Zoom in to show how great something looks. If you want to go a step further, talk about what the product is, where it comes from, or why it’s good this week.
Do the same if you’re loading a van or buying at the market. Record some snippets while you work and you are halfway there.
Photos are worth grabbing too, but we know that video performs best on Instagram. So, if you have to choose one, choose video.
Tip #2: Focus on lighting
Bright, strong lighting is vital to create good videos and food photos. Videos with shadows across the products look terrible and won’t showcase your business well.
Luckily, lighting is generally bright in food warehouses and wholesale markets. It might not be as ideal as natural light, but long strip lighting will illuminate your product well and remove shadows. This is the same for the floodlights outside the warehouse where vans pull up.
Good lighting makes fresh produce look even better, so it needs consideration before you film. Once you’ve found a spot or two to film, then continue to use the same lighting. And avoid using your flash. It can create harsh, bright spots on the food that look unnatural.
Tip #3: If in doubt, zoom in
With wholesale food quantities, it can be tempting to try and photo whole trays or boxes of produce.
But next in our list of tips for food wholesalers is to get up close. It’s often better to zoom in on your products. A single strawberry or a close up of a fresh, glistening fish can often look more striking than a whole boxful. Make the product the hero!
The photos will look better on your grid too (where all your Instagram posts and reels are displayed). An array of colours and textures will make your page visually appealing..
Tip #4: Collaborate on posts with suppliers and customers
Instagram has an amazing feature where you can ‘collaborate’ on a single post or reel. This means it appears on the feed of both you and the account you collaborate with.
This increases your reach with every post. It’s a great tactic when you have a supplier or customer with a significant Instagram following. Keen to try? Follow these instructions.
Tip #5: Re-share content from your chefs
If chefs you work with tag you in posts of what they’ve created, you can re-share these posts as a story. This appears at the top of the Home screen for all your followers and disappears the next day.
This only takes a few seconds to preview and confirm in your direct messages. It’s quick content that will keep your brand in the mind of your followers.
Make a start!
Instagram remains the top social platform for food wholesalers to focus on in 2025. It’s made for mobile and doesn’t require technical editing or video skills. So, when it comes to tips for food wholesalers, start small, post consistently, and you’ll see your followers (and maybe new business enquiries) grow as the year progresses.
