# Nourishing Biodegradable Coffins Shaina Garfield Offers an Alternative to the Traditional Burial By Kalin Ned | Published 2019-03-18 | Eco Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/biodegradable-coffin References: [dezeen](https://www.dezeen.com/2019/03/18/shaina-garfield-leaves-sustainable-coffin/) & [shainagarfield](http://www.shainagarfield.com/leaves-1) Shaina Garfield is a New York-based designer who recently debuted an alternative to the traditional burial ritual — a biodegradable coffin made with fungi. The idea of the newly developed product is to provide an eco-conscious method that allows for the body to "decompose quickly," while "fertilizing the surrounding soil." When one thinks about it, this is an incredible opportunity to benefit the environment on a larger scale. The biodegradable coffin also makes the manufacturing of traditional vessels obsolete as "in the US, [...] immense amounts of resources [are depleted] to make [...] coffins." Shaina Garfield's alternative to traditional burial involves placing the body on a pine wood surface, wrapping it in natural cotton and securing it with a "woven netting of rope that has been laced with fungal spores." ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 5.4/10 - Popularity: 76% | Activity: 77% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Eco](https://www.trendhunter.com/eco) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Biodegradable Coffins:** The trend of biodegradable coffins offers a disruptive innovation opportunity to transform the traditional burial industry by providing an eco-conscious and sustainable alternative. - **Fungal-based Products:** The trend of using fungi in product development presents a disruptive innovation opportunity, as seen with the biodegradable coffin made with fungi, to create sustainable and biodegradable solutions in various industries. - **Eco-conscious Burial Methods:** The trend of seeking eco-conscious burial methods presents a disruptive innovation opportunity for businesses to develop innovative solutions that prioritize sustainability and environmental impact. ### Who This Affects Most - **Funeral Industry:** The funeral industry can explore disruptive innovation opportunities by adopting the use of biodegradable coffins made with fungi, catering to the rising demand for eco-conscious burial methods. - **Packaging Industry:** The packaging industry can leverage the trend of biodegradable coffins made with fungi to develop sustainable packaging solutions that prioritize environmental impact and reduce resource depletion. - **Textile Industry:** The textile industry has the opportunity to adopt innovative materials, like natural cotton and fungal-based rope, as seen in the biodegradable coffin, to create eco-friendly and biodegradable products. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Mycelium-Made Biodegradable Urns](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/sail-funerary-urn.md) - [Eco-Friendly Pet Tree Burial Kits](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/ecofriendly-pet-tree-burial-kit.md) - [3D-Printed Ecological Funeral Reefs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/resting-reefs.md) - [Biodegradable Pet Urns](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/paw-pods-1.md) - [Deep Sea Funerals](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/deep-sea-funeral.md) - [Sustainable Design Materials](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/mycoworks-reishi.md) - [Cooling Mushroom Packaging](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/mushroom-packaging-1.md) - [Humorous Macabre Office Furniture](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/coffin-office-chair.md) - [Flame-Retardent Mycelium Pods](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/living-with-wildfire.md)