At the end of 2024, Finnish Customs published statistics showing the reality of the consumption patterns of Finns.

According to the statistics, the number of packages valued below 150 euros arriving to Finland from outside the EU increased more than eightfold last year. A staggering 97,7 per cent – a total of 27,5 million shipments – came from China.

This equates to approximately five packages from China per every Finn. Many of these are from so-called ultra-fast fashion companies like Shein and Temu.

There is something grotesque about Temu’s unashamed slogan ‘Shop Like a Billionaire’. Shopping for bad, cheap trinkets like a billionaire – is that truly what we dream of?

This intolerable situation is planned to be addressed with legislation. One of the major actions in this endeavour is the digital product passport. As part of a EU-approved eco-design regulation, it will become mandatory for all textiles sold within EU territory.

Digital passport to be implemented in 2027

The EU has placed a great deal of expectations upon the digital product pass (DPP). Textile companies will be among the first adopters.

Finnish Textile & Fashion has long been involved in the development of the digital product pass representing the interests of companies and boosting their preparedness.

The aim for DPP is to improve the sustainability, reusability and repairability of clothing. At the same time, its objective is to increase circulation of materials and enhance energy and resource efficiency – in other words, to enable the objectives of circular economy to be attained in practice.

In addition, the digital product passport guides and encourages the consumer to choose a responsible product by improving the availability of information regarding sustainability.

– Companies have to be prepared for the implementation of the digital product passport since it will, most likely, become mandatory in the summer of 2027 for all textile and clothing companies selling their products in the EU, says Pirkka Frosti, CEO at IOXIO.

IOXIO is in a leading role, working together with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra and Finnish Textile & Fashion, running an element of the Cirpass 2 lighthouse pilot in the EU digital product passport development. The task is to examine the opportunities the digital product passport creates within the workwear market.

Textile companies Image Wear, Touchpoint, Lindström, FabPatch, Dimex and Infinited Fiber are participating in the pilot project.

– This is an excellent opportunity for Finland and Finnish companies to contribute to the development of the digital product passport and raise issues from the perspective of our very own textile industry, Frosti says.

Information builds opportunities

The aim of the joint Finnish-led EU project looks at how to utilise the data from the digital product passport in designing workwear and finding solutions for extending a product’s life cycle.

What makes workwear different from other textiles is, among other, its hard-wearing nature, adherence to numerous safety-related requirements and suitability for industrial washing.

The digital product passport could enable a log that is continuously updated regarding the circulation of a work garment. This would mean seamless circulation of data between, for example, the laundry service provider and the workwear manufacturer.

The digital product passport could enable a log that is continuously updated regarding the circulation of a work garment. This would mean seamless circulation of data between, for example, the laundry service provider and the workwear manufacturer.

According to Kati Tukiainen, Development Director at Image Wear, this would help monitor the number of washes and the wear on the garment.

– This would help us determine the exact length of a product’s life cycle. It could also be an important tool for us in product development.

The digital product passport can help Image Wear in the development of clothes to better suit their purpose. This can be done, for example, by monitoring the care or repair history logged in the digital product passport.

Regarding safety matters, the digital product passport increases transparency and flow of information. Authorities supervising workwear can, in the future, detect whether a product adheres to the required standards and regulations simply by scanning an identifier.

– An easily accessible data concerning whether I can safely use this equipment when, for example, welding, helps also the worker.

Digital transition for the entire industry

Effectively the digital product passport can be accessed, for example, by using a QR code embedded in the product. Scanning it provides details on raw materials and environmental impacts.

The digital product passport can offer more precise instructions regarding material recycling and parts that can be reused. The digital product passport may include information such as the replacement of zippers or buttons. This increases the use of the garment and creates possibilities for different mending services.

– If a zipper breaks, do you need to throw the garment away? Or, maybe we could find completely new platform economy models where repairing is made easy and cost-effective, Frosti contemplates.

Though the initially planned time for implementation – summer of 2027 – is getting nearer, there are still quite a few details in the digital product passport that are unresolved. This is a tight timeframe and it poses challenging questions to the operation models of the entire clothing industry.

– How can we get our production methods and supply chains to operate starting from the level of raw materials, to provide information on how the products are manufactured, how much energy was used and what is their recyclability?

The responsibility of ascertaining and producing information cannot rest solely on the clothing manufacturers. The digital product passport sets a challenge for the entire production chain.

Pirkka Frosti believes that Finland and Europe have now the opportunity to present their case for a more sustainable and ethical option countering irresponsible low-cost production. The only way to compete with it is to offer better quality products that are sustainable and mendable.

– This is our chance to convey a message to the world that when you manufacture products that are of high quality and safe to use, and do it in a sustainable manner, you also enjoy using the product so much more.

Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra published a digital product passport playbook in March. It compiles lessons learnt along the development process along with practical advice for companies on how to get started with the implementation of the product passport. Finnish Textile & Fashion participated in the steering group by bringing forward the perspectives of the textile and fashion industry.

Finnish Textile & Fashion is part of the Cirpass 2 lighthouse pilot within the EU Digital Product Passport project. This article was produced in cooperation with the Cirpass 2 project.