Greenwashing is a term that refers to companies, products or services that are promoted as being environmentally-friendly when in fact they aren’t or the eco-friendliness is grossly overstated. It’s a deceptive marketing practice that’s been going on in the funeral industry.
As a funeral home that has been dedicated to making death care services healthier for people and the planet for well over a decade, greenwashing is something that we take personally. Calling attention to greenwashed funeral services and products is long overdue, because families deserve honesty from everyone in the death care industry.
We hope that the information below can help you avoid dishonest businesses and get funeral products and services that are truly better for the environment.
Why Greenwashing is Happening in the Funeral Industry
It makes sense that there are unscrupulous companies in the funeral industry that are using greenwashing tactics right now. In recent years there’s been growing interest in green funeral services.
The 2025 Consumer Awareness and Preferences Report from the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) notes that 61.4% of Americans are interested in green funeral options. It’s a notable increase from 2021 when 55.7% of people said the same. The interest is increasing because more people genuinely want to reduce their ecological footprint by choosing products and services that are environmentally-friendly. Many people are even willing to pay more if it means there’s less of an environmental impact.
With interest on the rise, there are going to be more businesses that will try to capitalize on the trend. Some businesses are honestly making an effort to offer products and services that are eco-friendly while others are using greenwashing to improve sales without lowering their impact on the environment.
Common Greenwashing Tactics in the Funeral Industry
How do you spot greenwashing? There are some common greenwashing tactics that are used in many industries, including the funeral industry.
- One of the most common greenwashing tactics is using the term “natural” rather than specifics. It’s an ambiguous term that isn’t regulated in any way so anyone can claim that any product or service is natural, which has no bearing on its eco-friendliness.
- Failing to provide details about what makes the product or service eco-friendly to back up the claims.
- Using green imagery to distract from the lack of details.
- Using eco-labels that are fake.
- Claiming to have affiliations or certifications that their business doesn’t actually have.
- Playing up one eco-friendly benefit while ignoring other attributes that cause environmental damage. For example, promoting a product that is made of sustainable materials but in a factory that emits a lot of emissions.
Sometimes it can be hard to figure out how green a product or service actually is based on marketing alone. Consumers have to do their research to verify certifications, affiliations and business practices. And if possible, contact the company directly to request additional information and specifics to see if they can back up their claims.
Greenwashed Funeral Industry Products and Services to Watch Out For
The death care products and services below have no meaningful environmental benefit even though companies that sell them claim that they do.
“Eco” Coffins Made With Synthetic Materials
Traditional coffins are very resource intensive and often have coatings and materials that aren’t natural at all and won’t break down over time. Greenwashed “eco coffins” are ones that are marketed as biodegradable but are sealed with plastics, have varnishes, use polyurethane and/or have metal hardware.
The Real Eco-Friendly Option: Plain pine caskets or caskets made with biodegradable materials that are suitable for natural burial at a conservation cemetery.
“Biodegradable” Urn With Hidden Plastic
About a third of families choose to bury cremains. If a biodegradable urn is used it will completely break down without negatively impacting the soil around it. Greenwashed “biodegradable” urns actually contain hidden plastic liners, glue or mixed composites that slow biodegradation or don’t fully break down at all.
The Real Eco-Friendly Option: Like coffins, look for urns made of a single natural material. Today you can find urns that are made of untreated paper, salt, sand or plant fibers like coconut husks.
“Green” Cremation That Doesn’t Offset Emissions
There are funeral homes that claim their cremation services are “green” without doing anything differently. It’s traditional flame cremation that isn’t done with modern retorts that capture emissions or use renewable resources as a fuel source. They don’t even offset emissions by using electric or hybrid vehicles for transport.
The Real Eco-Friendly Option: Look for funeral homes like Cremation.Green that detail the steps that are taken to reduce the impact of flame cremation. We take measures at every step in the process to lower the impact, right down to using online forms so that less paper and ink are used. You can also choose water cremation if it’s available in your state.
“Natural” Memorial Products That Aren’t Made With Eco-Friendly Materials
More families are choosing to hold memorials rather than doing viewings and traditional funerals. This can reduce the overall cost while allowing the family to personalize the funeral services. Unfortunately, many memorial products like pamphlets and candles that are marketed as “natural” aren’t eco-friendly.
The Real Eco-Friendly Option: You can work with companies outside of the funeral industry that have a track record of offering eco-friendly products that are backed up by proof. For example, you can work directly with a local print shop to create memorial booklets or pamphlets to have more control over the paper and practices that are used.
“Carbon Neutral” Services That Aren’t Actually Offset
Some companies offer “carbon neutral” funeral services claiming that they are backed by carbon offsets. In reality, no carbon offsets are purchased or the carbon offsets are from cheap, unverified sources.
The Real Eco-Friendly Option: Only consider services from providers who are transparent upfront about where the offsets are coming from, that the offsets are from a verified source and the value of the offsets.
At Cremation.Green we are experts at eco-friendly death care. For more than a decade we’ve helped families arrange funeral services that are truly green. We’re happy to discuss the details of our services to provide you with assurance – give us a call, text or email at any time.