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Japanese cities made $45 million in 2023 selling metals taken out of cremated remains
The ashes of the cremated can sometimes have valuable metals like gold and palladium from dental fillings, or titanium from bone implants
Many Japanese cities are selling metals taken from the ashes of the 1.5 million people who get cremated in the country each year, according to a Nikkei Asia report, which added that there is also an increasing push to create rules for this process.
This is because the law covers only larger bone fragments, which are usually claimed by families. Who is entitled to the leftover ashes on the other hand remains a legal grey area.
These ashes sometimes can contain valuable metals including gold and palladium from dental fillings, or titanium from bone implants.
Some cities sell these collected materials to pay for public cremations, according to the report, which added that out of 88 major cities, 42 of them, or 48%, had sold materials from ashes, with more than 70% of them doing it from 2010 or later.
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This is because about 97% of Japan's crematoria are run publicly, with Tokyo being an exception. It has private companies which operate seven out of the nine facilities in the 23 wards of the city.
However, only 45% of cities that sell such metals from ashes said they have notified residents, according to the report, with the rest not having done so.
The report also added that 6.49 billion yen (around $45 million at current exchange rates) was the total proceeds from this through 2023, which was 3.4 times that of 2019 due to a rise in both deaths and metal prices.
The city of Kyoto earned the most in 2023. 303 million yen. This was followed by Yokohama at 233 million yen, and Nagoya at 225 million yen.
