The Digital Product Passport (DPP) is rapidly moving from a buzzword to a concrete regulatory requirement in the EU. For companies that put packaging on the market – especially FMCG, e-commerce and manufacturing players – the DPP will fundamentally change how packaging data is collected, managed and shared along the value chain.
This article explains in clear terms:
- What the Digital Product Passport is – and what it means specifically for packaging
- How the DPP links to PPWR, Green Claims and other EU initiatives
- Which packaging data you will need to provide
- Why centralized, digital packaging data management is not optional but a prerequisite for DPP readiness
- How a specialized packaging software like Packa can help FMCG companies get there
1. What is the Digital Product Passport – and why does it matter for packaging?
The Digital Product Passport is an EU initiative to create a standardized, digital “information file” for products. The idea: every relevant product – including its packaging – will have a machine-readable data record that can be accessed via a digital identifier (e.g. QR code) on the product or packaging.
For packaging, the DPP will ultimately have three key objectives:
- Transparency: make material composition, recyclability, recycled content and environmental performance visible and comparable.
- Traceability: enable regulators, recyclers and downstream partners to see how a package was designed, produced and placed on the market.
- Accountability: allow enforcement of PPWR, Green Claims, EPR and other rules based on verifiable data instead of marketing claims.
In practical terms, this means:
- Your packaging will need a digital identifier (e.g. QR) that links to structured information (planned under PPWR from 2027 onwards for digital labelling).
- Authorities and business partners will increasingly expect consistent, audit-ready packaging data, not scattered spreadsheets and PDFs.
- For companies with hundreds or thousands of SKUs and complex portfolios, this is a data management challenge, not a label-design exercise.
2. How DPP connects to PPWR, Green Claims and other EU regulations
The DPP does not exist in isolation. For packaging, it is tightly linked to other regulatory changes:
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PPWR (Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation) defines hard requirements and timelines:
- From 12 August 2026, conformity declarations and technical documentation become mandatory for each packaging type.
- From 2027, packaging must carry digital identifiers (e.g. QR codes) linking to structured environmental information.
- From 2028, harmonized EU-wide packaging labels apply.
- By 2030, all packaging must be recyclable and meet recycled content targets.
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Green Claims rules will restrict vague environmental marketing. You will need verifiable, traceable data behind any “sustainable”, “recyclable”, or “CO₂-reduced” claim – exactly the kind of information a DPP is meant to provide.
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ESG and sustainability reporting requirements (CSRD, taxonomy etc.) increasingly require granular packaging data: material mixes, recyclate share, end-of-life assumptions, supplier certifications, etc.
The DPP can be seen as the data layer that connects these regulatory demands. Without reliable, structured data, you cannot:
- Prove PPWR compliance
- Substantiate Green Claims
- Deliver robust ESG packaging KPIs
3. What data will a Digital Product Passport for packaging likely contain?
Exact DPP data models for packaging are still being finalized at EU level. However, from today’s PPWR, EPR and recycling requirements, it is already clear which data categories you will need to manage:
Identification & scope
- Packaging type (primary, secondary, tertiary)
- Associated product/SKU, GTIN, brand, market
Material composition
- All components (bottle, cap, label, film, tray, box, inserts, adhesives, inks)
- Material types and subtypes (e.g. PET, HDPE, PP, paper grades, aluminium)
- Layer structures for composites and laminates
Weights & dimensions
- Component weights and total packaging weight
- Dimensions, volume, void space (relevant for e-commerce and PPWR empty space limits)
Recycled content and recyclability
- Share and type of recycled content (post-consumer / post-industrial) per component
- Recyclability assessment according to recognized guidelines (e.g. circular packaging design criteria used in your company)
- Known disruptive elements (labels, sleeves, inks, closures) and their impact on recycling
Compliance & certifications
- Conformity declarations for PPWR and relevant food contact or product safety rules
- Supplier and material certificates (e.g. FSC, PEFC, compostability standards) and their validity dates
- Evidence required for Green Claims and EPR reporting
Logistics & end-of-life information
- Packaging unit, transport efficiency, reuse options
- Recommended disposal routes and sorting instructions
- Links to local or EU-wide recycling schemes
For an FMCG company with 500+ packaging items, this quickly translates into tens of thousands of data points that must not only exist, but be consistent, up-to-date and centrally managed.
4. Why centralizing packaging data is a mandatory prerequisite for DPP
Many packaging and procurement teams still work with:
- Excel lists maintained locally
- PDFs and specifications stored in email threads and network drives
- Separate systems for quality, procurement, sustainability and design
This fragmented reality already makes PPWR preparation challenging. For DPP, it becomes unmanageable.
To generate a Digital Product Passport for a single SKU, you must be able to:
- Pull complete and correct data across all components and suppliers
- Validate that specifications and certificates are current and not expired
- Map data to a standardized data model that meets EU DPP requirements
- Export or expose this data via APIs or digital identifiers in a machine-readable format
This is only realistic if you have a central, digital packaging data backbone.
In other words, for companies affected by PPWR and DPP:
The real requirement is not “generate a QR code” – it is “centralize and standardize your packaging data so that a Digital Product Passport becomes technically and organizationally feasible”.
Without such a backbone, typical pain points will intensify:
- Weeks of manual chasing of suppliers for missing material data
- Inconsistent specifications across plants, markets and brands
- High risk of non-compliance due to outdated or incomplete documentation
- Inability to respond quickly to audits or regulator queries
This is precisely the problem space Packa is built to solve: a single source of truth for packaging specifications, documents and sustainability data.
5. What FMCG and e-commerce companies need to do now
Even if DPP details are still evolving, waiting is not a strategy. The data work you do today for PPWR and ESG is exactly the foundation you will need for DPP.
For companies with 500+ items and >€500k packaging spend, we typically recommend a structured, five-step approach:
Step 1: Create a complete inventory of your packaging portfolio
- Consolidate all packaging items (primary, secondary, tertiary) across brands and markets.
- Harmonize article IDs and link them clearly to products/SKUs.
- Identify duplicates and outdated specifications.
A SaaS platform like Packa can import data from Excel, CSV, PDFs and ERP exports to create this digital packaging inventory quickly – without a full ERP migration.
Step 2: Centralize specifications and documents
- Store all component-level specifications in one place – no more local Excel files.
- Attach drawings, material declarations, test reports and certificates to each packaging item.
- Define ownership and workflows for updates and approvals (procurement, packaging engineering, quality, sustainability).
This creates the single source of truth that DPP later relies on.
Step 3: Close data gaps relevant for PPWR and DPP
Experience shows that 30–70% of relevant packaging data is missing or inconsistent when companies start.
Key actions:
- Run a structured data gap analysis against PPWR/DPP data requirements (materials, weights, recyclability, recycled content, certificates).
- Use automated supplier communication to request missing data and evidence.
- Define standard formats and templates to ensure future data quality.
Step 4: Automate regulatory checks and analytics
With centralized and complete data, you can start to:
- Check packaging designs against PPWR recyclability and design criteria.
- Simulate the impact of material changes on CO₂ footprint, EPR fees and costs.
- Prepare audit-ready documentation for PPWR, Green Claims and future DPP obligations.
Packa provides automated regulatory checks and analytics across PPWR, EUDR, ESG and DPP data readiness – helping teams focus on decisions instead of manual data crunching.
Step 5: Prepare for digital identifiers and DPP integration
Once you have a consolidated, high-quality data backbone, connecting it to DPP systems becomes a technical integration task, not a manual project:
- Map your internal data model to the evolving DPP schema for packaging.
- Ensure that each packaging item can be linked to a digital identifier (e.g. QR) that points to the relevant information.
- Set up export or API interfaces so partner systems and future EU registries can access the data.
Packa’s architecture is designed to provide DPP-ready data for packaging via standard interfaces, once political and technical frameworks are fully defined.
6. How Packa supports your DPP journey
As a dedicated digital packaging management platform for mid-sized and large FMCG, e-commerce and manufacturing companies in DACH, Packa focuses exactly on the challenges described above:
- Centralized data management for all packaging specifications, documents and sustainability attributes
- AI-assisted digitization of existing PDFs, drawings and Excel files, including expert validation of critical data
- Automated PPWR, EUDR, ESG and DPP data readiness checks, highlighting risks and missing information early
- Powerful analytics for recyclability, CO₂ footprint and cost optimization across the entire portfolio
- Supplier collaboration workflows to request, validate and maintain data and certificates
- Seamless integration with existing ERP and PL