Drink Different

Growing up, I never really cared about the planet. I mean, of course, I cared. I’m not a monster. And before you pass judgement, I proudly served four tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, so I think I’ve more than honored my civic duty. Things changed for me, however, when I was in the Middle East in the early 2000s, and I witnessed tens of thousands of plastic water bottles being consumed every day. The waste was so overwhelming that I thought: How is it possible that the Earth’s surface is mostly water, and yet we don’t have a better way to access clean water than shipping it around the world?

Upon returning to the States, I realized that this was hardly just an issue for remote areas. In fact, 50 billion plastic bottles wind up in our landfills every year because only a fraction gets recycled — regardless of whether they’re placed in a recycling bin. Adding insult to injury, the top selling bottled water brands proudly advertise how their water comes from the most remote areas in the French Alps or the South Pacific, thousands of miles away. For water. In a plastic bottle. That’s not even as fresh as what I can make in your backyard.

So, I got to work with a talented team of engineers and developed Boomerang Water, a completely sustainable water-bottling and delivery company. At Boomerang, we offer the freshest, ultra-pure water that you can find, always bottled at the point of use, and distributed locally using durable glass bottles (engineered by our partners at Owens Illinois). To close the loop, we then collect our bottles from municipalities, campuses, local businesses, and consumer homes, and then reload them into our zero-waste machines, where the bottles are cleaned, disinfected, refilled, and capped for redistribution. No boats. No ships. No waste.

The reason why our system is so groundbreaking is that we’re able to do this all locally, meaning even the largest names in the industry, Coca Cola, PepsiCo, Nestle, can’t compete with us for freshness or sustainability. As a point of reference, it takes roughly ⅓ of a typical 500ml plastic water bottle full of oil to transport that single bottle to you. Plus, we now know that harmful chemicals from plastic bottles are leaching into the water while in transit, which we’re able to avoid by using glass. That makes Boomerang Water healthier for you and the planet.

Needless to say, our mission is to change the way we all think about bottled water. At Boomerang, we’re excited to kickoff 2021 with the Davidson Sustainability Challenge, a first of its kind program to reduce 1 million bottles of plastic waste from Davidson, North Carolina, a town of 13,000 people. But that’s just the beginning. Imagine the impact we can have on a national scale.

Today, I’m proud to say that I care about the planet. Like I said, I’m not a monster. But it’s time that we all start doing our part to create a better world for all. Hopefully in the near future, it’s as easy as drinking Boomerang Water.