America’s obesity epidemic is a known issue in the health field. But as doctors, nurses and other health experts struggle to help the living, the increasing size of Americans’ waist lines is impacting another arena—that which caters to the dead. Funeral homes are now reporting a rising demand for oversized coffins.

Standard caskets are generally between 24 and 27 inches wide, but manufacturers are now creating coffins as wide as 52 inches for those who weigh as much as 1,000 pounds. Indiana’s Keith Davis, who founded Goliath Caskets in 1985, told the Daily Mail his company specializes in larger caskets, and business has never been better. Goliath produces three sizes of coffins for the deceased obese. The 29-inch model will accommodate those who weighed up to 350 pounds; the 33- and 35-inch coffins will hold those between 350 and 550 pounds; and the third type—measuring from 37 and 52 inches—will hold up to 1,000 pounds.

“Our coffins have a fully articulated bed, a re-enforced bottom and are 1 foot, 4 inches high to accommodate the extra girth of an obese person,” Davis said.

Larger coffins cost more money, however—as much as twice the price of a standard-sized box. Families often encounter other additional expenses when arranging the funeral of an obese loved one. Many hearses are not capable of carrying heavier caskets, some funeral homes’ doors are not wide enough to accommodate them, and sometimes families even have to purchase an additional burial plot.

According to US Funerals Online, most cemetery plots measure 3 feet by 8 feet. Although some cemeteries are adapting to the rising rate of by offering larger plots that are 4 feet wide, that’s not always the case and many families are asked to purchase two conjoined single plots to bury a larger loved one. Such an issue can get especially complicated if the deceased pre-purchased a single plot, often resulting in the family purchasing two separate plots and trying to resell the original.

Still, the right funeral home director will help a grieving family through the process of burying an obese loved one in a kind and sensitive manner. Wisconsin funeral home director Andrew Dickinson told News8000.com when he began working in the business 10 years ago the need for oversized caskets for nearly unheard of.

“At times it can be uncomfortable,” said Dickinson, who co-owns the Dickinson Funeral Homes with his twin brother. “Some families just aren’t familiar with this room, and when they come in, they don’t know the dimensions and just they think everyone can fit in a traditional sized casket, which just isn’t the case.”

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