History

Hygeco International was founded by Louis Marette in France (Saint-Ouen) on 22 November 1887. Initially, it was a launderette but, later on, the business also disinfected bed linen for hospitals following a death. This turned out to be the first big and significant step forward e and the first step into the funeral industry. It soon became apparent that new branches were needed. In 1946, the company took its first steps in terms of preserving the deceased longer by means of dry ice.

Thanatopraxy
From 1960, there was growing demand from French funeral service providers for the possibility to preserve deceased persons longer. To this end, Jacques Marette – grandson of founder Louis Marette and now in charge – worked together with other pioneers in this field (in England and America), to develop a new process: thanatopraxy!

At first, confidence in this treatment was low, yet ultimately it formed the basis for the foundation of the ‘Institut Française de Thanatopraxie’ by Jacques Marette.

Through education – which was a contributing factor to the growing demand for the temporary preservation of the deceased – thanatopraxy was lifted out of its taboo. In 1976, this ultimately led to an amendment to French law.

Expansion of activities
During the same period, Hygeco – as the company is now called – significantly expanded its activities. Not only in France, but also abroad.

For example, a start was made with the production and delivery of products and services for funeral service providers, hospitals etc.



Facultatieve Group
Hygeco International has been a part of ‘the Facultatieve Group’ since 1 January 2007. As a result, the strengths of both organisations were combined, benefiting the client in particular.

During the announcement of the cooperation, Henry Keizer, chairman of the Executive Board of ‘the Facultatieve Group’, stated that Hygeco boasts an impressive amount of specific expertise and experience and that there are a large number of synergy advantages to be gained. A crucial aspect here is that Hygeco pursues the same high quality and service standards as 'the Facultatieve Group'.

Global leader
Today, Hygeco International is a global leader, with branches in Europe, the United States, Asia and with agents across the globe.

Thanks to the dedicated commitment of all our staff, we deliver our products and services – ranging from equipment to transport of the deceased and thanatopraxy – to funeral service providers, hospitals, forensic institutes and government institutions.