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Devoured by Fungi in a Mushroom Burial Suit
- Alyssa Cavalieri
- Jun 10, 2020
- 3 min read
Although being eaten by mushrooms seems a little eccentric at first, Jae Rhim Lee has succeeded in arguing its validity as a method of body disposition. The Infinity Burial Project is presented as a solution to cleaning the toxins in our bodies before they can re-enter the environment upon our deaths. The basis for this idea is founded on the development of Infinity Mushrooms, which consume the toxins released by human bodies while they decompose, or into the air if they are cremated. Lee was inspired to find a new method of green burial after learning that the Center for Disease Control in the United States cites that Americans have 219 different toxins in their bodies that are returned to the environment upon death. The chemicals and cosmetics from embalming add to this, as well as the mercury released into the atmosphere from dental fillings during cremation. Although natural burials do not add any new toxins to the environment, they still allow what is held within the body to return to the soil upon death and decomposition. The concept was introduced at Lee's 2011 TED Talk titled "My Mushroom Burial Suit."
Infinity Mushrooms were developed by Jae Rhim Lee through selective breeding of the mushrooms that consumed human bi-products, such as her skin, hair, and nail clippings the most effectively. The mushrooms are able to cleanse the toxins from the body and prevent them from returning to the environment, while the body is able to act as sustenance for the mushrooms and supply nutrients to other surrounding plants. Spores of Infinity Mushrooms are embedded into netting that is strategically sewn across a burial shroud or burial suit made of organic cotton. The face and hand coverings are able to be removed for viewings before being replaced upon burial .
The Mushroom Burial Suit as advertised on Coeio:
Currently, Lee's mushroom burial suits are only available through the company she founded, Coeio. The price is lower than that of embalming or cremation at $1500, although both the suits and shrouds are sold out as of June 2020. In addition to caring for humans post-mortem, they have also expanded to include pets in their environmentally friendly death plans as well with a mushroom burial pod for pets available through The Forever Spot.
The Forever Spot Pet Pod advertisement from The Forever Spot by Coeio:
Although the company had consumers lined up prior to the the final version of the product being released, Coeio has recently been noticed by celebrities in addition to everyday consumers. Notably, American actor Luke Perry was buried in a Mushroom Burial Suit in 2019, which brought the attention of the media to the new method of body disposition. Following his burial at a conservation site, his daughter, Sophie Perry, took to social media and posted the following caption on Instagram concerning his choice:
"Any explanation i give will not do justice to the genius that is the mushroom burial suit, but it is essentially an eco friendly burial option via mushrooms. All i can say is that you should all look into them at coeio.com or just by googling “mushroom burial suit.” My dad discovered it, and was more excited by this than I have ever seen him. He was buried in this suit, one of his final wishes. They are truly a beautiful thing for this beautiful planet, and I want to share it with all of you."
Until death do us part,
Alyssa
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