2026 Influencer Trends: 4 That You NEED to Know!
By now, you and your marketing team ought to know just how important influencer partnerships are when it comes to planning for your brand’s success! As we enter into 2026, we’ve seen just how far influencer work has come not only in the food sector but essentially all areas of consumerism. What began as small recipes and photos here and there has now turned into more deeply strategic, measurable activations. For produce companies, influencers are no longer just content creators — they’re partners that help drive trial, trust, and ultimately purchases!
We’ve gone ahead and done the hard work for you by wrapping up some of the 2026 trends to keep in mind as you plan your influencer partnerships in the new year!
1. Long-Term Partnerships OVER One-Off Posts
As mentioned above, brands are moving away from single sponsored posts toward longer relationships that span seasons, recipes, and usage occasions. This type of consistency builds familiarity and brand loyalty among audiences and is especially important for everyday items like fresh produce.
2. Action-Driven Content FTW (For the Win)
Influencer content that helps consumers either in the kitchen with food prep and storage tips or convenience like quick minimal ingredient recipes and meal inspiration is everything. Even more so is doing this without being overly heavy on branding and messaging. There is a sweet spot between a sponsored post that looks sponsored and a more natural one that offers genuine, helpful recommendations WITHOUT the sales pitch.
3. MORE Video Content
While static posts should not be forgotten, one of the major shifts we’ve seen in content is the use of video! This includes short-form, long-form, quicker-form (think TikTok) and so on! Having a partner that can deliver videos on multiple platforms can help to ensure increased visibility of the content.
4. Personality AND Transparency Matter
Partnering with someone who can not only talk about seasonality, sourcing, sustainability, and real farm stories but do it with their own personable and authentic voice makes all the difference in reaching audiences. As the produce industry is becoming more comfortable with talking about their farming practices, finding the right influencer partner to share that with their followers in a transparent yet personable way should not be overlooked.
This year, embrace the shifts in influencer marketing because truth be told, if something’s not evolving, it probably isn’t working! SO lean into this newer influencer landscape and let the content creators do what they do best for YOUR brand!
