Buried or cremated? “We opted for cremation!”retorts bluntly Gérard, 80 years old, resident of La Ravoire (Savoie)which settled the question. For him as for his wife, this choice is above all out of pragmatism. “Because after that it requires ongoing maintenance. So we always have to go through a service provider. Obviously, we choose the path of simplicity and the least constraint for our heirs.” For Michelle, it is a completely different consideration that motivates her choice: “We must not clutter up the floors too much, we must leave space for the living!”
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Testimonies which illustrate the shift in French society in recent years. While in 1980 the cremation rate was 1%, it is currently 40%. In Savoie, it is even more, according to Nicolas Pachoud, general director of the Chambéry crematorium: “Today, on the Chambéry basin, we exceed 60% of cremations. “It’s a phenomenon that has become more pronounced in recent years.”
A generational phenomenon
Behind, several mechanisms at work, analyzes Nicolas Pachoud: “I think that younger people perhaps attach less and less importance to physically going to a cemetery to pay homage to their deceased. And in this kind of situation, perhaps cremation meets their expectations more. “he says. Without forgetting the ecological consideration: “Some people will think that it is better to leave the earth to the living and at that point, opt for cremation so as to have less space on the ground in the municipalities and to be more able to personalize their funeral methods, in particular with a scattering of ashes in the open air. More and more families are requesting it.”
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A more economical solution?
Is cremation cheaper? It all depends on the choices that will be made for the funeral process, explains Nathalie, a funeral advisor in Savoie. But it is necessarily less expensive if you choose to scatter the ashes in nature. According to Nicolas Pachoud, the director of the crematorium: “We are perhaps around 10 to 15% cheaper for a cremation, since for a burial, we have a whole technical part which integrates an intervention in a cemetery with work, an opening of a concession, moving a monument, or even purchase a funerary monument when a family does not have one. So it is true that for a cremation where the family would choose to scatter the ashes, this is a step which is therefore eliminated. At the Chambéry crematorium, a cremation costs approximately €850. A price that does not include all the additional services that go into a funeral organization.
