Funeral practices in America have modified significantly over the previous few generations. While they might have included mushrooms, they possible didn’t embody mushroom caskets.

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In the early 1800s, most funeral preparations had been carried out within the house by the household of the deceased. By the late 1800s, the job of getting ready the deceased was moved out of the house and into the palms {of professional} undertakers. In the many years since, after-death care has concerned every little thing from embalming to the preparation of a closed casket to cremation, which is now most well-liked by a majority of Americans.

But what if there was another choice? That’s what the web is speaking about after a video a couple of mushroom casket went viral.

What are mushroom caskets?

In his viral video, TikTok person Jacob Simon (@jacobsimonsays) introduces viewers to the thought of a casket constructed from mycelium and hemp as a substitute of wooden.

“Instead of a traditional hardwood casket and embalming chemicals, this pillowy white container, called the ‘Loop Living Cocoon,’ grows in a week and biodegrades after about 45 days to actually enrich and improve the soil,” the TikToker explains. “Flowers planted above Mark’s resting place will grow into a garden that he becomes a part of, offering a beautiful, full-circle remembrance while nourishing the land.”

The ‘Mark’ that the TikToker is referring to is Mark Ancker, who was not too long ago the primary particular person to be buried in one among biotech startup Loop’s Living Cocoons. The firm has already discovered success in Europe, the place it has offered over 2,500 Living Cocoons, per Fast Company. However, this was their first American burial—and, in response to Mark’s daughter, Marsya Ancker-Robert, it was a phenomenal success.

“It was dignified, and beautiful,” Ancker-Robert said. “I have confidence that my dad will be fully part of the garden by winter.”

@jacobsimonsays Is this simply bizarre or is it a greater future for funerals? 🍄  Marsya honored her father’s needs to have a pure burial by bringing @Loop Biotech ♬ unique sound – Jacob Simon | excellent news 🌏🌍🌎

TikTok creator says reception makes clear folks “want to give back”

In an e mail to the Daily Dot, the TikToker mentioned they first got here throughout the idea in retailers like Fast Company and Ecowatch.

“I quickly realized this is a story I didn’t know much about but challenges my understanding of what a burial could and should be, and thus I felt compelled to tell this story in my own words for my community and the wider world,” Simon defined.

“Getting buried in a mushroom casket in your backyard is the type of thing that seems strange at first, but the more you think about it, the more sense it makes,” Simon continued. “Everything we ever consume, buy, or use comes from Earth, so why shouldn’t we become a part of the land again once we’ve moved on? I think it’s poetic and beautiful to imagine enriching the soil and growing into flowers or a tree once we’ve passed away, instead of lying in a box full of chemicals forever. A flourishing garden feels like a great way to remember a loved one as well. It challenges our cultural thinking of nature being different from humans, instead of realizing we really are a part of nature.”

“This is just the type of story that makes you stop out of curiosity & wonder, yet leave reimagining the way things should be done,” he added. “Every day people are taking a look at how we currently operate as a society, and thinking up amazing ways the future can be better. This is a perfect example of realizing something can be better, and going out to build that solution to prove it. Burials are a deeply emotional, cultural, and religious institution, yet green burials could offer a new and interesting variation that upholds tradition with a futuristic and improved twist.

The reception of the video taught him something

“Reading the reception to my video, it’s clear so many people are craving natural burials. Despite a little fear around haunting, and specific mushroom fear thanks to The Last of Us, the majority of commenters don’t actually think the concept is strange or ‘out there,’ and instead truly seem to want to give back to the Earth once our time has come,” Simon wrote.

“I genuinely think that most people want to live, and die, in a way that respects and improves our wonderful planet,” he famous. “With the incredible intelligence of human beings combined with shifting cultural conversations, we can continue to implement systemic change and make the world a little more ‘solarpunk.’ We all want to leave this planet better than we found it and enable future generations to thrive. Perhaps this, and stories like these, can help get us there.”

Eco-friendly burials within the present tradition

Green burials have gotten a extra fashionable choice for individuals who want to forgo the normal casket burial. As famous by Fast Company, the whole variety of inexperienced burial cemeteries within the U.S. has quadrupled over the previous decade, and there’s a rising curiosity in cemeteries with sustainable end-of-life choices. There have additionally been efforts put in place to make sure such burials don’t harm surrounding soil or waterways.

Additionally, there have not too long ago been some inexperienced burials of celebrities. For instance, Riverdale star Luke Perry was buried in what his daughter described as a “mushroom suit.”

The web appears fairly excited by this concept.