“As for carbon footprint reduction, at 1MM bottles displaced per year, that equates to ~ 5 tons equivalent of Co2,” Jerrod Freund, Co-Founder of Boomerang Water

Jerrod Freund is a seasoned investment banker with over 20 years of global experience in the industry. As Co-Founder of Boomerang Water, Jerrod is a valuable asset to the Boomerang Water Leadership Team and is dedicated to helping the company achieve its mission of eliminating single-use plastic water bottles and promoting global sustainable water management practices.

Here is an excerpt from an interview with him on green initiatives undertaken by Boomerang.
 

AlCircle.com: What inspired the creation of the Boomerang Bottling System (BBS)?

Jerrod Freund: While on multiple tours of duty for the air force in the middle east in the mid-2000s, one of our co-founders, Jason dibble, came up with the idea to bottle at the point of use utilizing reusable bottles – the idea was generated as he watched the proliferation and widespread use of plastic bottles by the US Military overseas and the subsequent disposal of the plastic bottles in burn pits and thought, there must be a better way. Upon returning to the US, he realized that consumers were doing the same thing (sans the burn pits).

AlCircle.com: Did Ball Corporation's initiative of producing 100% recycled cans encourage you to partner with the brand?

Jerrod Freund: The fact that Ball is so highly focused on recycled content in their products is just one facet of reasoning – there are multiple more. Still, when it comes down to it, Ball and Boomerang's interests, values, and ethics are aligned. Ball has been (and continues to be) at the forefront of cutting-edge sustainability initiatives.

AlCircle.com: How much plastic is this Boomerang Bottling System (BBS) negating, and in turn, how much carbon emission is being curtailed?

Jerrod Freund: Each boomerang bottling system at ~85% capacity can displace ~1MM single-use plastic water bottles. While fewer than a dozen are in operation today, boomerang is finishing dozens more. It has plans to go to hundreds, if not thousands – yet that still does not put much of a dent in the single-use bottled water market (with over 550Bn globally). As for carbon footprint reduction, at 1MM bottles displaced per year, that equates to ~ 5 tons equivalent of Co2 (given the transportation and production of plastic bottled water is so Co2 intensive).

AlCircle.com: How much do you think the Boomerang Bottling System (BBS) can contribute to the United States' net-zero emission goals?

Jerrod Freund: Given the positive impact relative to single-use plastic, and the vast use of single-use plastic, we believe BBS is highly impactful. It almost acts as a double impact between the plastic waste and the carbon footprint associated with bottling water and shipping thousands of miles.

AlCircle.com: Do you plan on collaborating with other aluminium packaging brands, like Ball Corporation?

Jerrod Freund: Not at this time – Ball is an extremely powerful and constructive partner – they provide significant support and input, and there's no need for us to work with another aluminium packaging company.

AlCircle.com: Do you have any future plans to introduce your bottling solution beyond a sports field or community enclosure?

Jerrod Freund: Boomerang's core focus is on the hotel/resort and leisure industry – most of our applications are at hotels. We also focus on industrial sites, corporate campuses, and cruise ships and have begun working on getting into military applications.