How the Funeral Sector Is Adapting to Sustainability Trends

Let’s talk about natural organic reduction and alkaline hydrolysis

Abbreviation of article “Future Trends” written by Edward J Defort, Publisher & Editorial Director magazine, USA

When the Federal Trade Commission’s Funeral Rule held a workshop for its review of the Funeral Rule, the program featured five sessions on various topics related to the Funeral Rule. We call into focus the session that addressed alkaline hydrolysis, natural organic reduction and other new trends in the funeral industry. Both alkaline hydrolysis and natural organic reduction have been heralded as alternatives that tout favorable environmental factors. However, they are also facing some challenges related to current funeral rules and laws. There is a big question whether they should be fitted to the current rules or the new rules should be created. 

The session was moderated by FTC attorney Sammi Nachtigal and the panelists included:  Sarah Chavez, Order of the Good Death, Tanya Marsh, Wake Forest University School of Law, Katrina Spade, Recompose and Beverly Tryk, People’s Memorial Association.

You can read a full version of this article in the November 2023 issue of the Director magazine, which is a benefit of NFDA membership, so only NFDA members can access it.

What is natural organic reduction and how is it different from methods specifically stated in the funeral, including, burial, immediate burial, cremation and direct cremation? 

Spade: The formal definition and legal definition of natural organic reduction is the contained accelerated conversion of human remains to soil. And what that means at Recompose is we place a body into a vessel, which is a large container, surrounded by plant materials such as wood chips, alfalfa and straw. And the over the next two to three months, the body decomposes naturally. We’re providing air into that vessel and the process is technically composting. That is the service that Recompose offers. We charge a fee of $7,000 for that disposition method.

Now, in addition to natural organic reduction, Washington State, where you’re located, has legalized several other alternative disposition methods. What are those methods and how are they different from each other and from disposition specifically stated in the rule? 

Tryk: In Washington we have what I like to call a sort of embarrassment of riches. We do have five different legal options for what you can do with your body when you die. Of course, we are very proud to have natural organic reduction (NOR) in Washington. We also have classical burial, we have cremation, which is far and away the most popular choice amongst Washingtonians. We also do have alkaline hydrolysis, which is a water-based form of cremation that’s growing in popularity with folks, especially up here in Washington. We do have anatomical donation, which is also a very popular choice here in Washington. […]

How are consumers responding to new trends including alkaline hydrolysis, natural organic reduction, green burials, home funerals and others? […]

Chavez: So people most wanted their guests to present the values that they have in life. And while that’s definitely released today, those values and beliefs are changing and we’re seeing that reflected in the way people do funerals. People want more control, they want authenticity, and they’re seeking out and willing to pay more for people for the option. And we see these changes reflected death care. 

For the first time in our history, more than half our population is choosing cremation over standard burial. The National Funeral Directors Association has predicted that by 2035 that number is going to rise to 80%. While it would be logical to assume that this choice is primarily driven by lower costs, that might not be the whole picture. Between 2017 and 2020, researchers at the University of Bath (United Kingdom) did a study on families who had chosen direct cremation. And what they found was that cost wasn’t even a factor. Families were choosing it because it afforded them more control over the funeral itself and who was in attendance, and also because not having a funeral at the time of cremation was consistent with their beliefs and values. 

I know that is not a U.S. study, but in a similarly kind of westernized country where societal trends often are shared, I think it’s still a valuable consideration. Aquamation meets growing needs by providing an eco-friendly alternative. Also, according to the NFDA, 60% of Americans are interested in greener funeral options and one of the ways that we see this reflected is through the growth of green burial grounds. In 2015, there was a total of 105 green burial grounds in the United States and today that number has tripled to 355. In speaking with folks at places like the Green Burial Council and then individual stewards of these spaces, they’ve all stated to me that consumer demand was a primary catalyst for opening a green burial ground. But of course, nothing has gotten people more engaged and interested in learning and talking about death care and what’s possible then human composting. Well, it’s clearly a choice that really resonates with people, we have to ask then if this is interest is really translating to business and providers. 

I reached out to a number of providers, and they all confirmed that yes, this was the case. At one of the larger providers, they provided service for 250 immediate need families and have 2,800 others who have completed or are finalizing their preneed plans for the process. Another provider shared with me they have been operating at capacity for the past year and a half since they opened and noted that composting services are driven by demand. 

In Colorado, a smaller funeral home owner said that they’ve already served 110 families since March of last year and that composting is the fastest growing segment of his funeral home, with over 35% of families choosing composting over all of the other options that they offer, which is everything. And then also adding the body composting is the single most requested service for preplanning families. These composting providers also shared that funeral homes in states where the process hasn’t been legalized yet, have been reaching out to create partnerships with composting providers to meet the demand for their own local families. 

Tryk: Here in Washington, People’s Memorial Association has been conducting a statewide price survey of all the funeral homes here for decades. The earliest record I could find was from 1978, and we just conducted it this past fall, and that would have been the first price survey since the legalization of alkaline hydrolysis and natural organic reduction here in Washington.

Since 2020, we have found that 27% of Washington funeral homes are now offering alkaline hydrolysis and 20% are offering natural organic reduction through business to business partnerships with one of the four primary providers of NOR here in Washington which, if we know anything and the advocacy space, it’s that the funeral industry can be one of the slowest to respond to developments in death care. And so the fact that these changes are already happening, that so many are adopting this in Washington, is incredibly promising for the increase in options. This shows consumers want this. What I’ve noticed is was a really great sort of transition into more of a participatory death care model. More consumers are interested in participating in the washing of their loved one. They’re more interested in, you know, coming in and cosmetic using their loved one themselves. Or they’re looking for opportunities to be involved in carrying caskets or lowering the grave or filling the grave. 

Would you like to read the whole article?

Read the spring issue of THANOS magazine - you can read online at pages 30-33