A Brief History of Fruit Baskets | Why Send Fruit Gifts

People have been giving fruit baskets for as long as there have been baskets. Early hunter-gatherers used baskets to collect fruits, vegetables and other comestibles. These baskets were then taken back to the family or tribe to be enjoyed by all.

Believe it or not, this practice still occurs on family farms and orchards all over the world. Of course, most of the fruit is sold commercially to supermarkets and to private buyers. In this article we are going discuss the contemporary fruit basket and how it has achieved such astonishing success.

The modern cellophane-wrapped basket became a favorite of urban businesses during the 1940s and 50s. At the time, florists were looking to expand their businesses and they needed a product that could be delivered just like flowers. And since fruit was relatively cheap and there was no shortage of sellers in the cities, they started offering fruit baskets.

Before very long, these gifts became popular with businesses. There are several obvious reasons for this. For starters, a fruit basket is a simple and affordable way to say "thank you" without the romantic or sentimental connotations of flowers. Really, what company sends another company a bouquet of flowers to celebrate the successful completion of an important project?

But when it came to fruit baskets, they were perfect for nearly any occasion. Businesses often exchanged them during the holidays because they knew the contents could be enjoyed by the entire staff. It was not until decades later than regular people started sending them to each other.