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Spotted: US-based Recompose has created a more ecological way to bury loved ones. The method allows the entire person, including bones and teeth, to decompose without dangerous chemicals, Recompose says.

Unlike traditional burials, Recompose does not use embalming fluid that pollutes the ground water. It also does not produce carbon dioxide like cremation. Instead, Recompose uses “natural organic reduction” to “gently convert human remains into soil.”

In practice, that means the body is placed in a “reusable recomposition vessel”. Families can take home some of the soil that is created during the process.

The company estimates that a metric ton of CO2 will be saved “each time someone chooses recomposition over cremation or conventional burial.” The practice will become legal in Washington state in 2020.