The Digital Product Passport (DPP) is a versatile tool that aims to bring together essential information about a product to support multiple policy goals, from sustainability to compliance and traceability. Its success depends on a consistent and coordinated approach across all EU legislation.
The DPP is a digital record that can include data on a product’s origin, composition, environmental impact, repairability, and compliance with regulatory requirements. It is designed to be accessible to different stakeholders – such as consumers, businesses, and authorities – throughout the product’s lifecycle, typically via a data carrier such as a QR code.
By centralising and standardising product information, the DPP can improve transparency, facilitate informed decision-making, and enhance the efficiency of market surveillance and enforcement.
Functions of a Digital Product Passport:
- Consumer & Sustainability Information
- Supply chain communication & traceability
- Simplified reporting
- Product compliance
- Customs enforcement
- Interconnection of platforms
Future of the Digital Product Passport
The Digital Product Passport (DPP) framework should be built on future-proof, flexible, and internationally aligned standards that ensure interoperability across sectors while reflecting existing business practices.
To avoid fragmentation, DPP provisions across EU legislation must remain coherent, with clearly defined roles and responsibilities for economic operators. Implementation should allow sufficiently long transition periods – at least 24 months – and follow a gradual, proportionate approach, taking into account supply chain maturity and the actual added value for different products.
Digital labelling should play a stronger role, with flexibility in how information is presented, while ensuring essential details remain accessible. At the same time, the system must remain affordable and user-friendly, particularly for SMEs, avoiding unnecessary costs and complexity. Simplification is key: data should be entered once and shared across interconnected platforms to streamline compliance.
Finally, the DPP should support a level playing field by strengthening enforcement for imported goods, while all measures must consistently take into account their impact on SMEs.
