As Seen In NPR: New green burial option in Nevada

For two families who found their way to Earth Funeral, choosing human composting for a loved one was a way to honor exactly who that person was.

NPR reporter Lucia Starbuck introduces Julie and her daughter Emily, who chose natural organic reduction for Julie's husband after he passed away unexpectedly with no funeral arrangements in place. 

Emily remembered her father as energetic, kind, and endlessly curious about new technology, while Julie recalled how he believed everything around us, even the leaves in their yard, held value and shouldn't be squandered. "It felt like just the most harmonious combination between like a very clean modern process and also a tradition that's as old as our species, where we surround our loved ones in flowers and return them to the earth," Emily said.

Family services specialist Rho Hudson walked Starbuck through the process, describing how a body is gently washed and wrapped in a shroud along with wood chips, mulch, and locally sourced wildflowers before being placed into a rotating vessel that carefully controls temperature, moisture, and oxygen. Over 30 to 45 days, the body is transformed into soil, yielding roughly 300 pounds of nutrient-rich material. 

Families can take home their soil to pot, plant, or share, while the rest can be donated to one of Earth Funeral's conservation projects. When using soil in this way, families are recommended to follow all local laws and regulations as these vary by location. "It's a gentle, natural process that returns you to nature," said Tom Harries, co-founder and CEO of Earth Funeral.

Reno couple Jo Ellen and Ron Keil, who met decades ago through their shared love of forestry work, prepaid for their arrangements as part of planning ahead for their family's future. Both hope their soil will one day help grow an oak tree that their children and grandchildren can visit. "I'd like to be an oak, a majestic oak," Jo Ellen said.

The coverage situates these stories within a broader cultural shift, noting that green burial options are gaining national traction as more people look for end-of-life choices that reflect their values. With Nevada's 2023 law authorizing the process and Earth Funeral's Las Vegas facility already serving families since 2024, human composting is available to Nevada families as a lasting, personal way to return to the earth.