The Green Burial Council (GBC; Folsom) now offers a certification program for body care products of all types, including cosmetics, odor control and products intended for topical use. Manufacturers of cosmetics and topical products can now apply for the GBC “seal of approval,” demonstrating their commitment to eco-conscious practices and gaining access to a growing market of environmentally aware consumers.

To be considered for certification, a body care product must make its full ingredient list publicly available and easily accessible; contain minimal PBT (persistent, bioaccumulating, toxic) chemicals; and contain minimal carcinogenic, mutagenic and reprotoxic chemicals.

When a product meets the minimum requirements, a one-, two- or three-leaf rating is then assigned based on the safety of the ingredients. Points toward the leaf ratings are allotted when the product is free of any ingredients included in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s list of carcinogenic and reprotoxic chemicals; free of any ingredients included in the Environmental Protection Agency’s list of PBT chemicals; or entirely made with ingredients on the Food and Drug Administration’s list of GRAS (generally recognized as safe) chemicals.

As funeral customers continue to seek environmentally friendly options, funeral directors and embalmers need to be prepared with techniques and products for body care that meet the safety and biodegradability requirements for natural burial and body composting. Practitioners of natural body care, as well as home-funeral advocates, have long used simple household products for hygiene, odor and cosmetic improvements. The GBC encourages industry suppliers to support licensees who wish to offer these trusted techniques in a professional setting.

Since the natural deathcare movement emphasizes the benefits of spending time with the deceased, deathcare professionals cannot assume that a green burial will always be a direct burial. Having a strategy and tool kit for nontoxic body care can prove essential to meeting the demands of green funeral consumers who ask for viewings and ceremonies. greenburialcouncil.org