Coffin Cheese & Million Dollar Metals | 4M #159

Welcome to the hundred-and-fifty-ninth edition of Morticians’ Monday Morning Mashup, 4M #159, where we’ll serve up bite-sized, easily-digestible nuggets of the deathcare news you need to crush conversations in the week ahead. Bon appetit!

Rocket’s man

An attempted DIY pet cremation is thought to have sparked a huge wildfire that spread for 11 square miles and caused $200k in damages. The partially burned remains of a dog were found along with a rock etched with the words “Rocket Dog, Rest in Peace Buddy.” Rocket’s owner has been arrested and is charged with arson and trespassing.

Jute genius

A UK inventor has patented a pretty cool lightweight, prefabricated coffin that packs flat until it’s ready to be assembled — a process that takes only two minutes. According to the manufacturer, Oasis Coffins, these jute-over-bamboo coffins became available in the U.S. in September.

Let this cheese stand alone

Back in 2003, archaeologists opened a 3600-year-old coffin they had excavated from a cemetery in China, finding within the mummified corpse of a young woman. Laid across her neck was a string of something that looked like decorative rock-like jewelry. It took 21 years, but scientists have finally identified the substance on the necklace — and it’s cheese. Specifically, kefir cheese. And now it’s officially the world’s oldest cheese.

Millions in metals

It’s a simple fact: there is money to be made in cremation metals recycling. It was reported last week that Japanese cities collected $45 million by recycling metals last year. And that’s not even every city; that total amount was earned by less than half (48%) of the country’s 88 major cities. It seems that allocation of the proceeds is up to the cities rather than at the federal level, as the report stated that “some cities sell these collected materials to pay for public cremations.” Way to recycle, reuse, and pay it forward!

One year ago on October 4 …

It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since we learned of the atrocious conditions at the Return to Nature green burial facility in Penrose, Colorado. For families of those whose remains were discovered inside that building last October, this past year has been excruciating and unforgettable, as some are still waiting for positive identification of their loved ones. However, some elements of this story do seem to be nearing closure, as Return to Nature owners Jon and Carie Hallford are expected to appear in court later this month to address plea deals that would keep them in jail on both state and federal charges.