Editorial · May 2026
The DPP Data Map for Textiles
What official EU sources tell us today about the data inside the future Digital Product Passport for textiles. Built exclusively on four EU Commission sources — no speculation, no expert opinion, no vendor marketing.
What's inside
"What data will I need to put inside the Digital Product Passport?" is the most asked question in the fashion and textile industry today. No one can give the final answer yet — the Textile Delegated Act has not been adopted. But the European Commission has published enough official material to form a remarkably clear picture of where this is heading.
This document brings those sources together in one place, organised by a three-layer certainty system so you know exactly what is law versus what is proposed versus what is methodology:
Layer 1
The ESPR Regulation — What Is Already Law
Master list of data categories that Delegated Acts can draw from: product & operator identification (UPI, UOI, UFI, GTIN, TARIC), compliance & safety (EU Declaration, Substances of Concern incl. REACH SVHCs), circularity & lifecycle information, and technical/voluntary information.
Layer 2
The JRC Preparatory Study — What Is Proposed for Textiles
Four proposed requirements (DO1–DO4) plus Substances of Concern. DO1 Robustness score (0–10, ISO tests). DO2 Recyclability score (0–10; elastane >15% scores 0). DO3 Recycled content — the only one with a minimum threshold. DO4 Carbon / Environmental footprint (voluntary for now). Scope: textile apparel containing ≥80% textile fibres by weight.
Layer 3
The JRC Methodology — How the Commission Will Decide
The 4-step process the Commission will use to write the Textile Delegated Act: Scope & Context → Use Cases & Data Needs → Design & Development → Validation & Consultation. Includes the Essential / Strongly recommended / Voluntary prioritisation logic and the nine structural categories that every DPP data requirement must address.
Where do you stand?
The document closes with five questions to assess your organisation's readiness today, based on what the official sources already tell us:
- Can you uniquely identify every product, manufacturing site, and key supplier in your chain with a persistent, machine-readable identifier?
- Do you have access to the ISO test data (spirality, shrinkage, visual inspection) needed to calculate a durability score for your products?
- Can you document the percentage of recycled content in your products by mass, with chain of custody certification?
- Do you know which Substances of Concern are present in your products, including their name, location, and concentration?
- Do you have a system in place that can provide different levels of data access to consumers, authorities, and recyclers?
Sources referenced
Every claim in the document is sourced. No expert opinion, no vendor marketing.
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 — ESPR — Adopted 18 July 2024
- JRC Preparatory Study on Textiles, 3rd Milestone — December 2025
- JRC145830 — DPP Data Methodology — 19 March 2026
- Ecodesign Forum Expert Group Meeting — 19 March 2026
- ESPR Working Plan — COM/2025/187 final — 16 April 2025
- Parliamentary answer EN E-000888/2026 — 4 May 2026
Go deeper
This document maps the landscape. Two ways to act on it:
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