Olivia Chadwick Combines Passion for Food and Photography

Style. Plating. Aesthetics. These are words that accurately describe Olivia Chadwick’s food Instagram, @nutritious_neverland. One look at her page and it is easy to understand why she has received attention from companies such as Smucker’s, Udi’s Gluten Free and the array of restaurants health and allergy friendly restaurants she visits.  

It all started when Chadwick was diagnosed with a gluten intolerance at the age of 15. The diagnosis made her change the way she ate. Gone were the days of junk food as she began to appreciate salads and whole foods. As a result, Chadwick began to fall in love with nutrition.

She has created her own unique brand. It began when, like many of us, she began taking photos of her food. Chadwick noticed she was eating a lot of the same products. She began to see how she could combine her love for food and photography to be used as free marketing for her favorite brands.

“I realized I was eating a lot of the same products. These berries come from a company; let me tag them and assist their marketing. They like it and they repost it.” A notable brand interaction is when Smucker’s used one of her photos to assist in their peanut butter and jelly campaign. A scroll through her Instagram feed reveals the high level of recognition she receives from companies. In addition to receiving comments, companies such as Udi’s Gluten Free and Driscoll’s have used her images for their own feed and tag her handle in their posts. “I’m not concerned about gaining followers. I just want to promote their food because it’s so good and I love it.”

Chadwick is taken back by her success. “I’m not experienced, I’m not trained, I’m not in marketing; I just eat it. I like it, and snap a photo because I like photography. It’s free advertising for the company. [For me] it’s just a hobby.” Photography is just a hobby. She utilizes Pinterest to research food photography to learn about different styles and lighting.

In addition to her Instagram page, Chadwick creates articles for Spoon University. Her article topics primarily focus on gluten-allergy free items and easy-to-make recipes. She distinctly remembers receiving a phone call from her dad, who saw the image from her tuna-stuffed avocados article reused on Microsoft Service Network (MSN).

“I cook very simple and healthy things,” she says, by either creating her own recipes or by finding a recipe to adapt to her liking and meet her allergy needs. In addition to healthy eating, she enjoys visiting the State Farmers Market, where she likes to explore the large quantity and variety of produce available.

Chadwick spent the summer of 2016 working on a small farm, Manakintowne Specialty Growers, planting and harvesting herbs, vegetables, and specialty flowers. The long days in the sun helped her to realize and appreciate how much work goes into producing food, from planting to harvesting. “I was the harvester because I was the young one. I had to go out in the grueling heat and harvest it. But I liked it” She was able to bring her photography experience to the farm to help its marketing efforts. The owner liked her style of photography and sought out her expertise and taking aesthetic images of the farms products, which were used for promotion. Their plants are used in specialty, upscale restaurants.   

When asked if she was ever worried that this passion and hobby for nutrition might ever start to feel like work, she mentions that it is something she has thought about as a senior applying for jobs. Currently, it doesn’t feel like work at all. It is something she enjoys and has fun doing. In her search for jobs as a nutrition major, she is always brought back to the areas of fitness, wellness and healthy eating.

“My dream job is to be fully funded and travel the world to write about locally owned, hole-in-the-wall restaurants.” As a backup plan, she also wouldn’t mind traveling domestically across the United States and writing about specialty restaurants.

Wherever Chadwick’s career takes her, she has a strong base and presence to build off of. Having to adapt to a gluten-free diet and completely change her eating at such a young age might have been challenging at first, but it revealed to Chadwick a new passion that has resulted in unexpected opportunities and a beneficial lifestyle development. If you are looking for food inspiration make sure to follow her page @nutritious_neverland.