The Death-Care Industry's Shift Toward Sustainability (colloquially referred to as human composting)

The American death-care industry is shifting measurably toward sustainability: cremation now accounts for 63.4% of U.S. dispositions (NFDA 2025), green burial has expanded to hundreds of certified providers, alkaline hydrolysis is legal in 25+ states, and natural organic reduction (NOR) is now legal in 14 states as of April 2026. The drivers are consumer demand, demographic change, and environmental awareness — and they are unlikely to reverse.

The shift is real but gradual. Consumers are increasingly seeking disposition options that align with environmental values, and the industry is beginning to respond. Understanding this trajectory requires looking at where the industry has come from, what’s driving the change, and where the next decade may lead.

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How Did We Get Here? Cremation as the First Green Wave

For most of the 20th century, traditional burial — embalmed body, metal casket, concrete vault, manicured cemetery — was the American default. That began shifting in the 1960s and accelerated dramatically over the following decades. Today, the national cremation rate stands at 63.4%, according to the NFDA 2025 Cremation & Burial Report.

Cremation is widely considered more environmentally friendly than conventional burial: it typically does not require embalming chemicals, avoids the land use and infrastructure of traditional cemeteries, and uses no concrete vault. But cremation is not without its own environmental footprint — a single cremation uses significant natural gas or electricity and releases carbon dioxide and other emissions. Cremation was the first major sustainability-adjacent shift in American disposition practice, but it is not the endpoint of that shift.

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What Role Did Green Burial Play as the Second Wave?

Parallel to the rise of cremation, a green burial movement has been building for decades. Green burial emphasizes natural decomposition: no embalming, no metal casket, biodegradable containers or shrouds, and burial in land managed for conservation rather than landscaped cemetery maintenance.

The Green Burial Council, founded in 2005, has driven professionalization of this space. The organization certifies funeral homes, cemeteries, and product manufacturers that meet defined green burial standards — and the number of certified providers has grown steadily year over year. Conservation burial grounds, which combine green burial with land conservation easements, have expanded in states across the country.

Consumer interest data from the NFDA shows that green burial options are increasingly requested at funeral homes — including by families that do not ultimately choose green burial but want to understand what is available. That inquiry rate is itself a signal of shifting values.

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How Does Alkaline Hydrolysis Fit as a Parallel Green Innovation?

Alongside green burial and terramation, alkaline hydrolysis — also called aquamation or water cremation — has emerged as another sustainability-oriented disposition alternative. The process uses water, pressure, and an alkaline chemical solution to accelerate the body’s natural decomposition, reducing remains to bone and a liquid effluent that is safely disposed of through municipal water systems.

Alkaline hydrolysis is now legal in more than 25 states and is operational in a growing number of funeral homes across the country. In some markets, it has moved from niche to mainstream faster than NOR. For funeral homes evaluating eco-friendly disposition options, aquamation and terramation may be complementary offerings — reaching different segments of environmentally motivated consumers who have different preferences for the process and the outcome.

For a deeper comparison of these two methods, see our article on terramation vs. aquamation.

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Why Is NOR Considered the Third Wave?

Natural organic reduction (NOR) is now legal in 14 U.S. states — Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont, California, New York, Nevada, Arizona, Maryland, Delaware, Minnesota, Maine, Georgia, and New Jersey — with more states actively considering legislation. NOR is the most recent and most radical departure from traditional disposition: the body is placed in a vessel with organic bulking material, and aerobic microbial decomposition transforms the body into approximately one-half cubic yard of nutrient-rich soil over a period of several weeks to a few months, depending on the system.

For state-by-state legal status and operational availability, see the state guides at /blog/state-guides/.

NOR has received significant media attention since Washington’s law took effect in 2020 and the first commercial NOR facility opened in Seattle in late 2021. Environmental impact research — including work from Washington State University — shows NOR has a significantly lower carbon footprint than cremation or conventional burial. That combination of environmental credibility and media visibility has given NOR a foothold in the public imagination that now drives consumer-level inquiry at funeral homes.

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How Are Industry Organizations Beginning to Adapt?

The funeral industry’s professional associations are taking note. The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) has increased coverage of green disposition options in its publications and at its annual convention. The Cremation Association of North America (CANA) — an organization that, by name, might seem focused exclusively on cremation — has developed its own NOR certification program: the NOROC (NOR Operator Certificate), which costs $300, includes 4.0 continuing education hours, and is valid for five years. The certification is available online and self-paced at cremationassociation.org.

The existence of a CANA-administered NOR certification is itself a signal of where the industry is heading. Professional associations typically respond to market reality, and the investment in NOROC reflects the recognition that NOR is a service offering funeral homes increasingly need to understand.

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What Is Slowing the Industry’s Transition?

The death-care industry’s transition toward sustainability is real but gradual. Traditional funeral homes have significant invested infrastructure: embalming equipment, casket showrooms, relationships with cemetery partners, and trained staff oriented toward conventional practice. Transitioning to NOR or even green burial requires capital investment, staff retraining, regulatory navigation, and marketing repositioning.

Additionally, not every market is ready. Consumer demand for green options is concentrated in urban, coastal, and environmentally engaged communities. Rural funeral homes may see little demand for NOR for several more years, even if the option becomes legally available in their state.

This is why industry adoption often follows a pattern of early adopters — funeral homes in markets with demonstrated consumer demand — leading the way, with broader adoption following as the service becomes more familiar and the equipment more accessible.

TerraCare Partners is one of the companies working in this space, helping funeral homes add NOR capability through vessel equipment and operational support. The B2B role that companies like TerraCare play — enabling existing funeral homes to adopt NOR without starting from scratch — is a key part of how the industry makes this transition.

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What Is the Demographic Driver Behind This Shift?

Perhaps the most powerful long-term driver of industry sustainability is not regulation or advocacy — it is demographics. Millennials and Generation Z, as they age into the period of life when pre-planning becomes relevant, are expressing stronger preferences for eco-conscious disposition than any previous generation. NFDA consumer research has tracked increasing interest in green options among younger age cohorts, and this preference is unlikely to diminish.

As this demographic cohort moves through middle age and begins making more end-of-life decisions — for themselves and for aging parents — their preferences will reshape the market. Funeral homes that have already built capabilities in green burial, aquamation, and NOR will be better positioned to serve these families than those that have not.

The death-care industry’s shift toward sustainability is not merely an environmental story. It is a story about the industry adapting to the next generation of consumers.

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FAQ

Is the funeral industry actually becoming greener?

Yes, with important caveats. The national cremation rate has risen to 63.4% (NFDA 2025), green burial grounds are expanding, alkaline hydrolysis is legal in 25+ states, and NOR is legal in 14 states. The direction is clear, though traditional burial and conventional funeral practices remain dominant. The transition is gradual and uneven across regions.

What is driving consumer interest in green disposition?

Environmental awareness, demographic change, and growing cultural openness to non-traditional death practices are the primary drivers. Younger consumers are more likely to express preference for eco-conscious options. Media coverage of green burial and NOR has also accelerated awareness significantly since 2020.

What is alkaline hydrolysis, and how does it compare to NOR?

Alkaline hydrolysis (aquamation or water cremation) uses water and an alkaline solution to dissolve soft tissue, leaving bone behind — similar in some ways to the outcome of cremation. NOR uses aerobic microbial decomposition to create soil. Both are significantly lower-impact than conventional burial or flame cremation. See our terramation vs. aquamation article for a detailed comparison.

What is the CANA NOROC certification?

NOROC is the Cremation Association of North America’s NOR Operator Certificate. It costs $300, includes 4.0 continuing education hours, is self-paced and online, and is valid for five years. It represents the funeral industry’s first major professional certification for NOR operators and is available at cremationassociation.org.

How can funeral homes add NOR to their services?

Funeral homes interested in adding NOR need to be in a state where NOR is legal, acquire appropriate vessel equipment, train staff, and meet state licensing requirements. TerraCare Partners works with funeral homes navigating this process — contact TerraCare Partners to learn more.

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Learn more about terramation providers near you — contact TerraCare Partners to explore your options.

Ready to explore terramation options? Contact TerraCare Partners — reach out here.

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Related Articles

• The Complete Guide to Natural Organic Reduction
• The NOR Industry in 2026
• Terramation vs. Aquamation: Which Is Greener?
• How Washington Became the First State to Legalize Terramation
• State-by-State NOR Legal Guides

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Sources

1. NFDA — 2025 Cremation & Burial Report. https://nfda.org/news/statistics
2. Green Burial Council — Provider certification and green burial standards. https://www.greenburialcouncil.org/
3. Cremation Association of North America (CANA) — NOROC NOR Operator Certificate. https://www.cremationassociation.org/
4. Washington State Department of Health — WAC 246-500 Natural Organic Reduction. https://app.leg.wa.gov/wac/default.aspx?cite=246-500
5. Washington State University — NOR composting research. https://research.wsu.edu/
6. NFDA — Consumer awareness survey data on green disposition trends. https://nfda.org/news/statistics
7. Cremation Association of North America (CANA) — Aquamation resources. https://www.cremationassociation.org/
8. National Funeral Directors Association — Annual convention industry trend coverage. https://nfda.org/

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