Beyond Fast Fashion: How Digital Passports Could Stitch a Greener Future for Europe’s Textile Industry

As fast fashion falters under the weight of its waste, a new model is emerging—rooted in sustainable manufacturing, circular thinking, and radical transparency. The Digital Product Passport (DPP) will transform textile, fashion, and craft industries across Europe. At ekip´s workshop in Lund, Sweden the main question was: how will DDP affect us.

In Lund, a diverse group came together—designers, manufacturers, artisans, and researchers from across the textile, fashion, and crafts sectors. Their goal? To explore how new EU regulations, smart investments, and cutting-edge innovations in sustainable manufacturing could shape the future of how we make and use textiles.

The Policy Assessment Workshop for ekip explored textile, fashion and crafts through the lens of sustainable and circular manufacturing and DPP. The outcome feeds directly into upcoming EU policy recommendations for innovation in the Cultural and Creative Sectors and Industries (CCSI).

More than just a tech tool

Digital Product Passports, or DPPs, are like a digital twin for every item we buy. They carry key information about a product’s life—where its materials came from, how it was made, how it can be repaired, reused, or recycled.

The idea is simple but powerful: make the entire system more transparent. With a DPP, you can trace a garment’s journey from raw material to finished piece, check authenticity, and even learn which designer or craftsperson had a hand in creating it. It’s a major step toward a more circular, sustainable way of producing—and consuming—what we wear and use.

At the workshop, participants saw the Digital Product Passport (DPP) as more than just a tech tool—it’s a way to shine a light on craftsmanship and help push the textile industry toward a more sustainable future. Right now, the data needed to do that exists—but it’s scattered, disconnected, and often hard to access.

Many attendees stressed the need for platforms that bring all these pieces together. Some companies are already collecting this kind of information, but without a shared system, it’s tough to create real impact. With better funding and support, a centralized platform could set a new sustainability standard—and take some of the responsibility off consumers’ shoulders.

Ultimately, it’s about more than data. It’s about building trust across the entire value chain—from the people who make the products to the people who buy them.

Anna Keiser Lagesson from Tailstore was one of the participants:

“A key question is what kind of information customers need access to. What can the producer disclose without revealing trade secrets, while still ensuring the transparency needed to meet EU regulations? The information must be accessible across all stages, easily understood, and trusted by everyone. Another important feature is enabling consumers to add their own data.”

Reuse material

One key aspect of DPP is its potential to reuse materials and transform leftover resources into new materials. One group even renamed waste as “unloved materials” to emphasize its potential as a resource. Christian Svensson from Hemslöjden i Skåne explains:

“Having a product passport could increase the value of what is now seen as garbage, says – With a product passport, sorting, redistributing, reimagining, and reusing materials becomes easier—it makes them lovable.”

A shifting manufacturing landscape will naturally open the door for new solutions and innovations. One group highlighted the importance of scaling innovations and transforming them into viable business ventures. Marie Löwegren from the School of Economics and Management says:

“We need to discuss the business model from the very beginning. That’s especially important in the cultural sector, where this is often overlooked. More financial thinking within the sector could also lead to greater independence.“

Photo: Caroline Wendt

Small series of prototypes

One group discussed a concept they called “on-demand rapid prototyping”, a subcategory of DPP. The core idea is to drive innovation and foster change through small series of prototypes. This could involve constantly testing new ideas and solutions—using both SMEs and industry players as living labs for transformation. The crucial factor here is to work with organizations that have fast processes and strong in-house knowledge and capabilities.

 Lots of benefits

Peter Kisch from Future by Lund sees exciting potential in the growing movement toward digital transparency and sustainable production.

“We see a lot of benefits with this idea—like diversifying product brands, which means more companies, more jobs, more customized products for consumers, and a more resource-efficient system overall,” he explains.

The question now is which innovation supports could help us.

“One might be collective use of production infrastructure for testing; another could be crowdfunding systems for innovative efforts. A third might be the development of prosumer communities—where people are both producers and consumers, something we already see emerging in, for example, the energy market.”