Water cremation is set to be made available for the first time in the UK.

The process, known as resomation, uses a mix of potassium hydroxide and water to break down human remains in what is billed as a more sustainable option.

It takes four hours – the bones remain, and are powdered then returned to loved ones in a similar way to ashes, in an urn.

Resomation is used in Canada, South Africa and many US states.

It will be the first alternative way to dispose of a body in the UK since the introduction of the Cremation Act in 1902 – and Co-op Funeralcare will be the first to offer it, starting later this year.

The British company Resomation, which supplies the equipment, claims the process produces a third less greenhouse gas than cremation and uses a seventh of the energy.

According to the founder of the company, Sandy Sullivan, the liquid used in resomation is “safely returned to the water cycle free from any traces of DNA”.

Anti-apartheid campaigner Archbishop Desmond Tutu chose the process for his funeral arrangements in South Africa – he died in late 2021.

Gill Stewart, managing director of Co-op Funeralcare, said that “land for burials is running out”, and that resomation could help the industry “improve its carbon reduction targets and meet the capacity challenges of a growing population”.

The funeral provider anticipates that the cost of resomation will be similar to that of a traditional cremation.

Initially, resomation will only be offered in certain locations – which are yet to be announced – with the intention of expanding it across the UK, the funeral chain said.