EU Digital Product Passport to Cover Clothing, Furniture and Electronics

Every product on the European market — from a T-shirt in a wardrobe to a table in a living room to a mobile phone — is set to carry its own digital identity file: what it is made of, where its materials come from, whether it can be repaired and what happens to it at the end of its service life. Novi list and Glas Istre report that this is no longer a concept but a regulatory framework the European Union is introducing step by step through the Digital Product Passport.

A regulation that applies directly

The Digital Product Passport is one of the key instruments of the European regulation establishing a framework for setting ecodesign requirements for sustainable products. Because it is an EU regulation, it is binding in its entirety and applies directly in all member states. Its purpose is to guarantee reliable product information across the whole life cycle, from material composition and origin to sustainability data, repair options and recyclability.

The European Commission is establishing a Registry of Digital Product Passports that will form the central part of the system for registering and managing the data. For products covered by a passport obligation under European rules, economic operators will have to provide the prescribed information and register it in line with Union requirements. The framework is meant to support the circular economy, more efficient use of resources and greater transparency on the single market.

Sectors with the longest supply chains go first

According to Christian Springer, head of the processing industry department at the Croatian Chamber of Economy (HGK), the passport will weigh most on sectors with complex supply chains: textiles and clothing, furniture and mattress production, the tyre industry, the production of iron, steel and aluminium, and part of the electrical and electronic equipment sector.

The obligations will not be limited to makers of finished goods. "Even a company that does not place a finished product on the market can be covered as a supplier of materials, parts or components to a European manufacturer," Springer said, adding that buyers will demand ever more verifiable data from their suppliers on the composition, origin and environmental characteristics of products.

The bottleneck is data, not labelling

HGK says awareness in Croatia is rising but preparedness remains uneven. Large companies, exporters and firms embedded in international value chains are already tracking the regulatory changes, adapting their information systems, improving traceability and talking to suppliers about future obligations. Many small and medium-sized enterprises are only beginning to assess the scope of the change, partly because concrete requirements are still being defined through separate rules for individual product groups; some firms still lack the information to estimate costs, investment needs and organisational change.

Springer's position is that companies should not wait for the last technical details to be adopted. Firms can already establish:

• which data they hold and where it sits;
• who is responsible for it;
• how its credibility is verified;
• how it is exchanged across the value chain, from raw material supplier to finished product.

That will require additional investment in digital systems, staff training and data links between producers, suppliers and buyers. HGK argues the passport should not be read purely as a regulatory cost: "For companies that approach it in good time it can become an instrument of competitiveness," Springer said. Firms that adapt early will find it easier to prove the quality, durability and sustainability of their products and to hold their position in European supply chains.

Furniture makers and the state prepare

Prima grupa, a furniture producer for which the rules carry particular weight, said it supports EU initiatives promoting more responsible product management, waste reduction and greater sustainability. The company called measures restricting the destruction of unsold products a positive step towards a more sustainable economy, saying they push manufacturers and retailers towards more efficient inventory management and new uses for goods. Implementation will require adjustments to operational processes, monitoring systems and supply chain cooperation, but the company said the long-term benefits outweigh the challenges. It cited its new panel furniture factory in Severin near Bjelovar — which it describes as the most technologically and ecologically advanced furniture plant in Croatia — as an example of investment in digitalised production, energy efficiency and responsible resource management.

The Ministry of Economy said the state will provide business with timely information on implementation of the regulation and publish guidance together with relevant business and professional organisations, with the aim that all economic operators, including small and medium-sized enterprises, have what they need to comply. At national level, implementation will be governed by a law on the implementation of the regulation, while passports will be introduced gradually, by product group and within the deadlines set in European legislation.