Information Flows Around the Digital Product Passport

The diagram shows what information the parties involved typically receive and what feedback can flow back into the product lifecycle.

Raw material producers provide data on extraction and production, such as the place of origin and production conditions. Manufacturers add information about the raw materials used, their properties, and the production process. At the same time, they receive information about raw materials as well as feedback on the quality of products and components.

Retailers receive information about raw materials and production and can provide product feedback. Product users receive information about environmental impacts, use, repair, and disposal.

Repair businesses receive repair and spare-parts information and can report on the condition of products and components. Waste management and circular economy companies use information about material composition and quality for sorting, reuse, and recycling.

A QR Code Alone Does Not Make a Digital Product Passport

The real transformation takes place behind the scenes:

In the future, product data must be available and up to date throughout the entire lifecycle—and usable by the relevant authorized parties—from raw material extraction and manufacturing to retail, repair, reuse, and recycling.

In practice, this quickly raises complex questions:

• Who is responsible for providing which information?
• Who will be allowed to access which data?
• And does the passport apply to a model, a batch, or each individual product?

There are many oversimplified claims circulating, particularly regarding the introduction of the Digital Product Passport. The fact is: There is neither a single dataset for all products nor one common launch date for every industry.

To shed light on this maze of half-truths, we have created a concise guide. It explains how the DPP actually works throughout the product lifecycle, which parties are involved, and how companies can start preparing systematically today.

You can find the full overview here: Guide