The article in the url below expands upon an issue I first wrote about back in 2015 (Strategic CSR – Compost) and followed-up on in 2019 (Strategic CSR – Compost II) – biodegradable burials. Rather than encouraging the natural decomposition of bodies, converting them directly into compost, however, this latest idea introduces the organic coffin:
"After months of testing, the first funeral has taken place in the Netherlands using a fast-composting 'living coffin' made of mycelium, the mat of fibres that forms the underground part of fungi."
The material, mycelium, is central to producing what the company Loop is calling a "Living Cocoon":
"Mycelium is 'nature's recycler,' [Bob Hendrikx, the founder of Loop] said. Not only does it neutralise toxins and provide fresh food to everything growing above ground, but its fibres can be used to make anything from food to clothes and packaging – including coffins. 'Mycelium is constantly looking for waste products – oil, plastic, metals, other pollutants – and converting them into nutrients for the environment,' he said. 'This coffin means we actually feed the earth with our bodies. We are nutrients, not waste.'"
The process is as efficient as it is sustainable:
"Hendrikx said the process by which a human body in a traditional coffin becomes compost can often take a decade or more, slowed by the varnished wood and metals of the casket and synthetic clothing, which can take even longer to disintegrate. A mycelium coffin will be absorbed back into the soil within a month or six weeks, he said, actively contributing to the full decomposition of the body it contains and enriching the surrounding soil quality – all within a period of two to three years."
The ultimate goal is to use our leftovers to begin reclaiming land we have already polluted:
"Loop is working with scientists to measure the impact of human bodies on soil quality, with a view, Hendrikx said, to 'convincing policymakers to convert polluted areas into healthy forests – with our bodies as nutrients.'"
The challenge will be how to scale the process, while keeping it affordable:
"Each Living Cocoon takes several weeks to form as the mycelium mat grows in the shape of a coffin and is then allowed to dry naturally. As soon as it is exposed to damp soil again it comes back to life and begins the decomposition process."
Take care
David
David Chandler
© Sage Publications, 2020
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First funeral held using 'living coffin' made of mushroom fibre
By Jon Henley
September 15, 2020
The Guardian
