India anchors GS1’s global vision 2030 for supply chains

As the heartbeat of global commerce becomes increasingly digital, real-time, and sustainability-driven, supply chains are being reimagined not as cost centres, but as strategic assets. That was the resounding message at the GS1 Global General Assembly 2025, hosted for the first time in India (between May 19-23, 2025)—a decision that symbolically and strategically underscores the country's growing importance in the global trade and logistics ecosystem.

“Today, GS1 standards are the most widely used in the world for products,” said Renaud de Barbuat, President and CEO of GS1. “Over a billion products carry a barcode, scanned more than 10 billion times daily—more than the number of Google searches.”

But the future isn’t just about scanning faster. It’s about scanning smarter.

From barcodes to digital trust: GS1’s vision 2030
Best known as the creator of the ubiquitous barcode—scanned over 10 billion times a day—GS1 unveiled its ambitious Vision 2030 strategy. At the heart of the plan is the evolution from traditional 1D barcodes to next-generation 2D barcodes—such as GS1 QR Codes and GS1 DataMatrix—that offer a quantum leap in data storage and accessibility.

These 2D barcodes enable a single scan to unlock a product’s origin, batch number, expiration date, manufacturing history, allergen information, and sustainability credentials. More than just a visual identifier, they become digital passports for products—trusted, scannable windows into their full lifecycle.

In pilot projects with Woolworths in Australia, the new codes delivered a 40% reduction in food waste and a 21% boost in operational efficiency—proving that digital transparency is not just a vision but an ROI-positive reality.

“This is not a theory,” said Barbuat. “These are measurable outcomes from real deployments. Supply chain transformation is not only possible—it’s already happening.”

Adding to that, Mark Batenic, Chairman of the GS1 Management Board said, “When we can exchange trusted data seamlessly, the possibilities to improve experiences—for the shopper, patient, and industry—are endless.”

Why India is pivotal to the global barcode transformation

India’s role in GS1’s global supply chain transformation is not just symbolic—it is strategic. As a $3.7 trillion economy with a rapidly growing manufacturing base and a digital-first policy environment, India serves as both a testbed and a scaling engine for next-generation supply chain innovations. From farm produce to pharmaceuticals, the country is redefining how global trade tracks, authenticates, and trusts its products.

GS1 India, established in 1996 by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry along with leading industry bodies such as CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAM, and others, plays a central role in this journey. As the Indian affiliate of GS1 Global (headquartered in Brussels), the organisation enables businesses to adopt standardised systems that enhance efficiency, safety, and end-to-end visibility across both physical and digital supply chains.

Indian manufacturers today rely on GS1 standards not only for domestic efficiency but to meet the stringent compliance and interoperability demands of international markets. These standards—recognised globally and aligned with ISO—have become the backbone of product identification across sectors such as retail, logistics, agriculture, and healthcare, serving over two million companies worldwide.

In healthcare, GS1 standards help ensure patient safety by enabling end-to-end traceability of medicines and preventing the circulation of counterfeit drugs. In agriculture, they enable farm-to-fork transparency essential for exports to regions with tight regulatory frameworks like the EU and the US.

Uniquely, India is leapfrogging traditional barcode adoption patterns. While Western markets began with organised retail, India is leading barcode-enabled digital transformation through high-impact sectors such as pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and public health. These are not only vital to domestic welfare—they are also pillars of India’s export economy. In this context, product traceability becomes more than a supply chain concern—it becomes a lever of consumer trust, public safety, and international trade competitiveness.

By aligning local innovation with global standards, India is helping shape the future of digital commerce. Its scale, diversity, and digital ambition make it an indispensable player in the global journey toward transparent, trusted, and tech-enabled supply chains.

“We’re here in India because of its strategic importance as a hub for digital transformation and supply chain modernisation,” said de Barbuat. “Leaders from over 100 countries have come together to approve our new five-year strategy—and India is at the centre of that future.”

Adding to that S. Swaminathan, CEO of GS1 India said, “It’s not just about adopting barcodes—it’s about reimagining how we move from fragmented, paper-based processes to intelligent, interoperable systems.”

“Just like Aadhaar provides a trusted identity for individuals, GS1 gives products and services a globally recognised identity—helping them move seamlessly across supply chains,” added Swaminathan.

Some of the examples are:

• In pharma, where counterfeiting remains a major risk, over 70 countries now require GS1 DataMatrix codes on medicine packs. India, a global pharma exporter, is rapidly aligning with these standards to boost safety and credibility.
• In agriculture, GS1 works with farmers, producers and organisations to enable farm-to-fork traceability, crucial for exports facing stringent EU and US norms.
• In alcohol distribution, GS1’s Excise Supply Chain Information Management System (ESCIMS) helps Indian states track authenticity and improve tax compliance.

These efforts mirror international models—such as Carrefour’s QR-based traceability on eggs in Europe and Coca-Cola’s reusable bottle tracking in Brazil—highlighting India's alignment with the world’s best supply chain practices.

From data silos to interoperable ecosystems
GS1’s broader ambition is to create a digital backbone for the global supply chain. One that replaces data silos with trusted, interoperable ecosystems.

Through initiatives like the Global Data Model, businesses can synchronise product information seamlessly across platforms. This supports more accurate e-commerce listings, prevents stockouts, and speeds up product recalls. Meanwhile, Verified by GS1, a global registry of product identifiers, allows businesses and regulators to verify a product’s legitimacy—crucial in an era of online fraud and grey market goods.

“It’s like Aadhaar for products,” explained Swaminathan. “A globally unique, verifiable identity that improves trust and efficiency from warehouse to checkout.”

Consumer safety, sustainability, and smart retailThe shift to 2D barcodes also meets rising consumer expectations. Shoppers now demand to know more than just price—they want to understand where their product came from, how it was made, and whether it’s safe.

• In healthcare, smart barcodes can flag expired medicines at checkout—reducing risk and enhancing patient safety.
• In retail, scanners can use expiry and batch data to reduce food waste and support dynamic pricing.
• In sustainability, India could soon benefit from digital product passports, a concept being championed in the EU to rate the environmental impact of every item sold.

Barbuat emphasised: “Supply chains are no longer invisible. Consumers want—and deserve—transparency. 2D barcodes are the gateway to that transparency.”He further added that with new-generation QR codes, consumers can not only get important information but also engage with the brand and product. Moreover, with access to real-time information through barcodes, brands and logistics providers can track and trace their products across the entire supply chain.

The road ahead: Collaboration, standards and scalability
The transition, however, is not automatic. Currently, only around 60% of barcode scanners globally can read the new 2D formats. GS1 is working with scanner manufacturers, retailers, regulators, and ecosystem players to accelerate adoption by 2027.

In India, alignment with national initiatives like Make in India, the National Logistics Policy, and ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) provides fertile ground for scale. GS1’s standards can serve as the invisible infrastructure powering these mega-projects, ensuring data integrity, interoperability, and trust.

“We are here not just to set standards,” said Barbuat, “but to help industry transform—and we believe India will be one of the most important players in that transformation.”

India as a catalyst for global supply chain reform
GS1’s Vision 2030 is not merely a roadmap—it is a redefinition of how global commerce is organised, verified, and trusted. With India at the centre of this shift, the country is not just catching up to the digital future—it is helping to build it.

In a world where supply chains are more vulnerable than ever to disruption, fraud, and opacity, GS1’s next-generation barcodes, rooted in global standards and localised innovation, offer a clear path forward: from fragmented systems to unified ecosystems; from data overload to verified insights; and from consumer doubt to trust through transparency.