Open a British funeral magazine and you’ll see one ad after another for something you don’t see in American counterparts, at least not yet: woven caskets and urns. Some are simple, utilitarian and advertised as low-cost alternatives; others are decorated with woven designs, ribbons and/or flowers, advertised with an emphasis on quality. Funeral Service Journal Editor Brian Parsons said he’s found an example of a wicker coffin advertised as early as 1903, but the modern woven casket phenomenon seems to have started at the turn of the current century, fueled by the development of woodland burial grounds in Great Britain. In 2000, The Somerset Willow Co. started advertising in FSJ; a typical issue now has six to eight advertisements for these biodegradable caskets at varying price points.
A woven casket from Somerset Willow Co.
Natural Burial Co. will import
woven caskets, promote ‘green’ products
interview with Cynthia Beal
The Natural Burial Co., Portland Oregon
503.442.1430
Though the United States, unlike Great Britain, has few “green” cemeteries, an entrepreneur in Portland, Oregon, is getting ready to import and distribute biodegradable caskets and natural burial goods.
The Natural Burial Co. owner Cynthia Beal used to run a natural foods store. Now she’s shifted environmental gears, becoming a natural death-care advisor and distributor, promoting natural burial in a state with a cremation rate close to 60 percent. But she believes that if people knew they could “be a tree,” they would overwhelmingly choose that over being “ashes scattered in the wind.”
ICCFA Magazine interviewed Beal via e-mail.
Are you actually a U.S. distributor for these products?
The Natural Burial Co. is importing and distributing biodegradable caskets and natural burial goods. We are bringing in our first samples and inventory late summer/early fall. We also assist with business planning and market strategy for selected producers who have promising ideas and products. We represent some of our producers to the trade and general public through shows, talks and press.
Once our directory is online, our company Web site will be used to point customers to cemeteries, service providers and suppliers who cater to the natural niche. Also, I give presentations on the natural burial choice, and am writing a book called “Be a Tree: The Manual for Turning Yourself into a Forest.”
At this time, we have a particular focus on quality biodegradable caskets handmade from alternative fibers. We’re bringing the British expertise over here first because thousands of their caskets have successfully gone into the ground and crematoria over the past decade, and we believe in their “tried and tested” products.
We’re also here to help funeral directors and cemeteries who want ideas about how to “green up” their operations in general. We are constantly reviewing and adding items to our line—natural embalming fluid, biodegradable body bags and grave-tagging/GIS systems designed for old cemetery inventory and unmarked woodland burial operations, to name just a few.
A biodegradable ARKA Ecopod
How quickly can these caskets/urns be delivered? Can people order them at need or do they need to have some in inventory?
At the moment, we deliver the best value with pre-orders, though we offer expedited air-freight of single caskets from Great Britain to anywhere in the United States. We’re also interested in working with regional inventory consortiums; we encourage funeral service providers with a small chain or cooperative of homes or cemeteries to contact us. Once we have inventory above and beyond our pre-orders and our contracted resellers, our delivery service will expand to offer expedited “at need” as necessary. The woven and fiber caskets are very lightweight, and easy to inventory and move around. I can lift an Ecopod in and out of the car by myself, and I’m 5-foot-1 and 105 pounds.
A few months ago, I had an e-mail discussion with Kimberley Campbell of Ramsey Creek Preserve (the first green cemetery in the United States). She said the woven caskets are lovely but expensive, because they are imported, and that their clients seemed to be OK with using a cardboard box, a shroud or wooden (kosher) casket. Do you know of any plans for domestic production? What do you see as the market for these caskets?
We think the market prospects are excellent for these items. Gaiam Real Goods will begin offering a first range of woven fiber pet and people coffins from the Natural Burial Co. this fall through its online retail store.
Biodegradable caskets make up 3 to 6 percent of the current U.K. market, and their share is growing. According to one recent trade conference report I read, one in five caskets is expected to be biodegradable there in the next five years. And from Great Britain’s Natural Death Centre, we hear that almost two-thirds of Britons polled in a nationwide survey recently reported they’d rather have a woodland burial if they were informed of the option. (Most of them have the choice available, since there are somewhere around 250 woodland burial sites in the United Kingdom, but they're not always informed of the option.)
Given that 30 percent of Britons are buried and about 70 percent are cremated, this suggests that as many as one-third of all Britons currently being cremated would do it differently if they could. We believe that the numbers may be similar, or the unmet need even greater, in the United States.
Cardboard boxes are perfectly adequate for a natural burial, and we don’t discourage them. But not everyone needs an inexpensive funeral—in fact, some people enjoy spending a bit of money on how they “depart.” And many folks like the idea of supporting both the environment and traditional artisan arts. The Natural Burial Co. identifies and highlights quality manufacturers that stand out from their competitors for using renewable materials, paying fair wages and minimizing environmental damage up and down their supply chain.
From our company’s perspective, there is an obvious desire for biodegradable caskets and natural burials, and the need in the United States is largely underserved. We expect U.S. producers to rise to the challenge in short order, and we’re already in contact with a number of them. Several of our U.K. suppliers have indicated an interest in licensing their designs and training in their techniques over here, and we will be facilitating that process for them, matching up U.S. capacity with the product’s manufacturing requirements.
Do you plan to market outside the “green” niche?
Our informal research to date shows that people from all walks of life—regardless of age, education, economic class, gender or politics—seem to find natural burial both acceptable and interesting. It's not at all limited to the “green” market. Even folks who haven’t heard of natural burial understand it the moment it’s explained to them, and the few who think it sounds a little odd agree that people who want it should at least have the choice.
In fact, it turns out that almost everyone wants products that are clean and don’t harm people or the environment when their resources are extracted or their products are made, and no responsible person wants to leave problems for future generations. We believe natural burials will be in greater demand once the public learns they're possible, and we expect that forward-thinking independent cemeterians and funeral directors won’t want to miss this opportunity.
However, the conventional funeral industry in the United States, as in the United Kingdom, still has a number of significant obstacles to overcome before it can respond appropriately to the demand, much as conventional grocery stores did before they could make the move to sell organic foods, now the fastest growing segment of many of their operations. Fortunately, while it’s not all figured out yet, the tools are forming, and more will come.
Creative biodegradable product alternatives such as woven caskets, biodegradable body bags and natural embalming fluid are coming to market. Organic landscaping and habitat creation methods are constantly improving and can be transferred to cemetery operations. Communities are often more interested in new green space and brownfields renovation than new rows of headstones. Land acquisition and management options that include conservation trusts, working with cities and local communities and public/private partnerships open up new potential for others.
It won’t necessarily be simple; each site and each situation is unique.
Many of the experts who will help make the transition probably don't even know who they are yet. They’ll be the sustainable landscape designers and energy specialists who can minimize fertilizer and water use, provide wildlife habitat and restore indigenous landscapes, solarize and add energy efficiencies to your buildings and grounds, or they’ll be natural products advocates like me who’ve spent decades looking for “ways to do it cleaner” and have a whole slew of ideas about how to go about it. The U.K. offers us an inspiring model, with a wide variety of examples and experience for us to draw from.
I believe the transition will be an interesting and engaging challenge, and I think that associations like the ICCFA are set to play a very useful role in that change. We look forward to being a creative member of the ICCFA in this learning process.
Is the Natural Burial Co. a viable business now or in the foreseeable future, or is doing this more a labor of love for you?
Many of the things that caught the passion of the baby boomers, from natural foods to natural medicine, midwifery, natural fabrics, renewable energy and nature conservation—to name just a few—suggest there is a significant unmet need for environmentally friendly end-of-life options, as well.
However, while it may be the “boomers” who bring the new and expanded choices to the table, our parents and our children seem to like them, too, so the need may not be as tightly tied to a particular generation as some may think.
With respect to cemeteries, we’ve had 40 to 50 years of looking at the downsides of various products and practices and we can now begin to envision and measure their effects. Burying plastic, metal, concrete, formaldehyde and chipboard will probably turn out to be temporary methods, done when oil and land was relatively cheap and little care was paid to accounting for the long-term consequences.
Insurance companies and cities can think ahead, however, and will eventually have to do the math that calculates who will pay for management (or cleanup) in perpetuity. Sooner or later, interring all those resources will make little sense to a growing number of people, and they’ll choose another way. I’ve worked in and used natural products for a long time, and when I hit my late 40s, I was ready for my next (and last) career. It only makes sense that I work on ending life as naturally as I’ve tried to live it.
The Natural Burial Co. is a classic start-up business whose goal is to bring new products into the market and serve an unmet but valid consumer demand. It began as a labor of love and personal need; it’s become a labor of commitment and it will be a viable business in the future for both ourselves and the businesses that affiliate with us. We’re looking to grow and be successful. There is no question in my mind that a meaningful portion of the public wants natural burial. We’ll help them get it.
Darrell Hill of The Somerset Willow Co., England, cuts willow, which can regrow eight feet in a year.
A woven casket being made. The cloth linings used for the interiors are also biodegradable.
This is a relatively new area for the U.S. market, but I think interest in “green things” and energy conservation will grow. I often joke that I’m the only baby boomer I know who dislikes the idea of cremation; I’m intrigued by the idea of natural burial as a way to attract people who would otherwise choose cremation.
I want to assure you, you are not the only boomer who dislikes the idea of cremation. A lot of cremation fans dislike it, too—they just don’t know it yet. In fact, in statistics I’ve seen, while 70 percent of U.K. residents surveyed are cremated, a whopping 64 percent or so say they’d like a natural burial. This seems to imply that almost half of those being cremated in Britain currently may not want this at all! (And conversations suggest they’re not being given the natural burial option by traditional funeral homes and cemeteries and that presenting all available options may need to be required by law, similar to the Funeral Rule’s General Price List requirement in the United States.) A couple of my contacts in Great Britain have just received a very large grant to get to the bottom of this (among other things) and find out what people really want, what they mean by “natural burial” and then how it can best be created for them.
Here’s my favorite story (and this happens to me all the time now):
PERSON: “Oh no, I’m not going through all that (in reference to our conversation on burial). I just want to be cremated.”
ME: “OK, so tell me, all energy use and emissions aside, if you could be buried naturally, in a natural container, with a tree planted on your grave that lived for 200 years, and grow side by side with 1,000 of your friends and community members, holding green space at the edge of some urban growth boundary and creating habitat for animals and living things, while making cool shady places for people to walk and commune with nature, would you rather be ashes scattered in the wind somewhere, or would you rather be a tree?”
PERSON: “Well, heck, if I could do THAT, I’d rather be a tree.”
About 80-90 percent of the people I engage in this topic initially say they want to be cremated. After I ask them this question, about 95 percent indicate they’d prefer a natural burial, and I’ve been asking this question for three years. The other 5 percent are committed to the impermanence of cremation and are also 100 percent behind well-run, highly filtered, energy-recapturing, emissions-conservative, inexpensive, publicly run and managed crematoria, and I honor and support and will work for their choices completely.
Our readers are mostly cemeterians, crematory operators and funeral directors (and suppliers, of course). Is there anything else you’d like to tell them?
Make no mistake about it: This is not a fad. A natural process is a requirement for a growing number of consumers, and businesses and governments who really want to serve will respond.
If the coming shift to natural burial duplicates the shift to other natural materials that have happened over the last 20 years, it will likely be demand-driven at the consumer level first. Most businesses don’t change until consumers ask them to do it. Anyone with a cemetery, crematory or funeral home can satisfy that demand immediately simply by offering sound and appealing alternatives. The first cemeteries to advertise liner-free, woodland, natural and conservation burials will have a ready market because clients will look for them and word-of-mouth will spread their names.
Those cemeteries and funeral directors who step up to the plate and, whenever practical and possible, conform to or reflect the suggested guidelines of the Natural Step Framework, Great Britain's Association of Natural Burial Grounds, Canada’s Memorial Society of British Columbia or the Green Burial Council (in the U.S.) will eventually out-compete those who do not use any standards at all.
In the early ’90s, the first feasibility study for a woodland burial site was completed for the U.K.’s City of Carlisle by Ken West, bereavement services director. He was asked to find a more sustainable way for his city to manage its burials and cremations.
Less than 15 years later, over 250 sites throughout the United Kingdom now offer a wide variety of “natural” burial options to an increasingly interested public, and the number is growing. Carlisle, as well as Woodvale Cemetery in Brighton/Hove, both filled their designated woodland burial sites early and are now into greatly expanded second phases. Even private natural burial grounds in remote places are attracting burials from far afield and getting a premium for their offerings. The U.K. examples prove that, in at least some instances, the conversion of conventional cemeteries to woodland style management is economical, practical and popular with a growing segment of customers.
The initial wave of British natural burial grounds became established because a certain percentage of operating cemetery sites had pre-existing profiles that made their conversion relatively simple and almost immediately profitable. Some of the feasibility research we have suggests that similar conditions exist in the United States, and enterprises who fit this profile will probably benefit by looking at conversion. Those who can benefit will probably realize that the sooner they convert, the better. While going natural may seem like an impossible challenge to some, there will be others in the death-care services community that find the transition makes perfect sense for their particular circumstances.
Operators who have to be convinced that it’s the right thing for them to do are probably not the ideal candidates to do the groundbreaking in the United States. Providers who want to see this change come to their industry and can put some personal passion into it will distinguish themselves and stand out from the crowd. And for some, including natural options in their service and product lists will be a sound business decision that will help them survive in a time of rising costs and competition.
It’s not every day that you find yourself in an industry ripe for change—and in the right direction. Conversion from conventional products to methods that are non-toxic, sustainable, aesthetically pleasing and ethnically appropriate is an interesting challenge; it demands creativity and intelligence, and can have unexpected benefits, as well. Young people are likely to be reinspired by the idea.
Natural burial won’t be for everyone. But it will be for some, and whoever is in a position to serve that demand will probably do well.
Copyright ICCFA 2007
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