In 1980, cremation represented only a small percent of funerals celebrated in France. Forty-six years later, estimates are around 46%. The calculation is easy: each year, crematoriums earn 1% of this death market. Behind this average, which does not say much, lies a reality. More and more French people prefer to be burned rather than buried. For what reasons? This is what 20 Minutes sought to find out.
As the world prepares to celebrate its dead for All Saints' Day, the ovens of the 220 crematoriums in mainland France do not really have time to cool down. Sorry for those who would be shocked by this, but it is a reality. To absorb the approximately 1,800 deaths recorded every day in our country, cemeteries are no longer enough. “It is above all the evolution of the attitude of the Catholic Church which has made things happen. For a long time, the Catholic Church opposed it, so people didn't dare. It was not until the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s that this was relaxed. Then, it took a generation for the population to get used to it,” estimates Jo Le Lamer.
The one who was president of the French Cremation Federation for eight years is today at the head of the Association of Crematists of the West. Over the course of his career, he will have seen mentalities evolve. “Now that religious practice is less, many families do not hesitate to resort to cremation,” explains Breton. In England, the Protestant Church did not oppose the cremation of bodies. Result: more than 80% of British people opt for cremation. Burial will not disappear, however, especially since Islam, the second religion in France, prohibits cremation.
The decline in religious activity is not the only reason for this success in France. Financially, cremation is generally more economical than burial. In times of inflation, the subject is not neutral. But it is above all the evolution of our societies which explains the decline in the form of traditional burial. At a time when families are geographically dispersed and families are broken up and then put back together, the concept of the family vault or the reunification of the deceased proves to be complicated. “When you opt for an urn, the choices are easier. We can decide to place it in a columbarium for example. But we can also decide to keep the ashes, or even scatter them. It’s according to everyone’s wishes,” continues Jo Le Lamer. There is also a land question, because cemeteries cannot be expanded infinitely.
To meet demand, many communities are expanding their crematoriums, as is the case in Vern-sur-Seiche, near Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine). “Since 2010, we have doubled the number of ceremonies here. This is why we installed a second oven in 2018,” explains Stévy Candel, regional director of the Société des crematoriums de France. Thanks to work on smoke evacuation, the Rennes metropolis will be able to treat up to 2,000 deaths per year.
An investment that will not be in vain as the demand is high. During periods of epidemics or during heat-related mortality peaks, French crematists have sometimes had difficulty coping. “We do our best to stay within the six working day period after death. In my eyes, waiting any longer is much too long,” continues Stévy Candel. Since July 2024, the maximum time for burial or cremation has been set at 14 calendar days from the day after death.
While the ceremonies follow one another and the crying families pass each other, the crematoriums try to take care of their arrangements to better support this mourning. It is also to meet the demand of families that the Vern-sur-Seiche crematorium has set up a common dispersal space. “We created an edge to avoid the isolation that death imposes on us,” explains the artist Sophie Cardin to whom the design was entrusted. “We wanted an intimate, tree-lined space that would allow us to respect the mourning of families. Taking care of the living also means ensuring that we can support the dead with dignity,” concludes Stéphane Labbé, the mayor of the town.
