The burials, which are the fastest-growing environmental trend in Britain, will be included in new professional training that members of the Australian Funeral Directors Association must undertake after April 1.

The training is intended to keep funeral directors up to date with the funeral industry's latest trends, which include everything from driver training to the use of cardboard coffins.

Ballarat funeral director Brian Harrison said natural burials had the lowest environmental impact of any form of burial or cremation.

"The area around and sometimes over the gravesite is covered with native plants and shrubbery, and there are no chemicals involved in the upkeep of the natural burial gardens," he said.

Mr Harrison said funeral trends had changed dramatically in recent times, and families expected funeral directors to be well informed and highly trained.

The changes will require members to complete a set number of hours of training, based on the number of funerals they conduct each year.