Human composting gains ground in Germany as alternative form of burial

It’s already legal in Schleswig-Holstein and possibly soon in Hamburg

The City of Hamburg is considering becoming the second federal state of the German Republic to allow the practice of human composting as an option for burials. The practice has already been legal in Schleswig-Holstein since the start of the year.

Known in German as Reerdigung (“Reburial”), human composting is considered a more sustainable method of burying a human body. In the German context, the technique, developed by the company Meine Erde, involves placing the body in a large stainless steel, coffin-like container filled with straw and hay. Within only 40 days, all organic components are supposed to be broken down by the microorganisms.

The company explains that the only matter left then are the bones which are ground up and mixed in with the rest of the resultant compost. The mortal remains are then buried then buried in the cemetery having become fertile soil suitable for planting plants.

Dust to Dust

Since June, the State of Schleswig-Holstein has designated a grove in Elmshorn as the first burial forest in Germany with the permission to bury human remains turned into compost there.

The practice of human composting has actually existed for probably millennia but has been forgotten in favour of modern practices involving embalming and coffins or cremation. Nowadays, with the rise of environmental consciousness in many Western countries there is a resurging interest in more organic ways to dispose of human remains.

The first place to legalize human composting was the State of Washington (USA) in 2019. Since then, it has been allowed in six more states.

Still, changing ingrained habits takes time and there is some criticism regarding the new burial practice in Germany with voices saying that it needs to be better researched. The SPD and the Greens in the Hamburg Parliament are open to the idea but have a whole series of questions before getting to the approval stage.