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Story from Jam Press (Human Composting Facility)
Pictured: A video grab of Elizabeth Garcia’s remains being scattered in space alongside her cat’s ashes.
Inside human composting facility where you pay £5,500 to give your body back to nature
When it comes to end-of-life services, most people tend to think of cremations or coffin burials.
However, there is another choice that is gaining popularity: human composting.
The process of having your body returned to the Earth is offered by a company called Recompose in Seattle, US, to the tune of £5,500 ($7,000 USD).
Though this is just the starting price – you’ll have to pay more depending on which custom ceremony you choose and if you want any extras, such as ritual bathing or a live stream of the event.
With the cost of dying in the UK soaring in 2024 – the average price of a funeral is just under £10,000 according to SunLife – this could well be a less costly alternative.
And it seems Brits are keen, too.
“It would be wonderful if you could bring this to the UK,” commented Liz on a recent Facebook post.
“Please expand to Europe,” asked someone else.
Unfortunately, human composting – also known as terramation – is not legal in Britain yet.
But if you’re curious about the process, here’s what it involves.
Just as it sounds, the body will be composted, decaying in a special mixture of wood chips, alfalfa and straw chips.
This takes place over eight to 12 weeks, a process that Recompose claims requires just one-eighth of the energy of a “conventional burial or cremation”.
There are four phases; during phase two, which is known as 'laying in', the body will be placed inside a large vessel behind a white circular hatch.
It is then monitored as it decomposes into soil.
The amount of soil a body generates varies per person but is typically around one cubic yard and weighs around 500-1,000 lbs.
It can then be used to nourish flower gardens and house plants.
Morgan Yarborough,