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
The GS1 General Assembly 2025, hosted by GS1 India, brought together over 150 global leaders from GS1 Member Organisations, industry partners, regulators, and technology experts. With artificial intelligence (AI) and digitisation accelerating across every sector, the Assembly focused on a bold vision: building a future powered by trusted data and a more sustainable tomorrow.

“The world is relying on digitisation more than ever. The growing use of AI is leading the way, and in this AI-driven economy, data quality is not an option – it’s mandatory. It’s everything,” said Mark Batenic, Chairman of the GS1 Management Board, during the press meet on the first day of the event.

Batenic highlighted how high-quality, interoperable data is the foundation for digital transformation across supply chains, retail, and healthcare. “When data can be trusted and shared seamlessly, the possibilities are infinite – for society, for businesses, for consumers, and for patients in healthcare. This week is important to discuss how we respond to this challenge and build a future together,” he added.

Best known as the creator of the ubiquitous barcode, which is scanned over 10 billion times each day, GS1 used the global platform to unveil its forward-looking Vision 2030 strategy. Central to this strategy is the transition from traditional 1D barcodes to next-generation 2D barcodes, such as GS1 QR Codes and GS1 DataMatrix.

These enhanced barcodes provide significantly more information at the point of scan, enabling access to a product’s origin, batch number, expiry date, manufacturing history, allergen information, and sustainability credentials. In effect, these codes serve as digital passports—transparent, secure, and rich in data—ushering in a new era of traceability and trust.

Real-world results from early adopters reinforce the potential. In pilot projects with Woolworths in Australia, the adoption of GS1 2D barcodes led to a 40% reduction in food waste and a 21% improvement in operational efficiency.

“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.”

Batenic echoed the urgency and promise of these advances: “When we can exchange trusted data seamlessly, the possibilities to improve experiences—for the shopper, patient, and industry—are endless.”

As AI reshapes global commerce and consumers demand greater transparency, the GS1 General Assembly 2025 made it clear: trusted data isn’t just the foundation of modern supply chains—it’s the future of how we trade, live, and innovate.

Why India is pivotal to the global barcode transformation
India’s role in GS1’s global supply chain transformation is not merely symbolic—it is strategic. As a $3.7 trillion economy with a rapidly expanding manufacturing base and a digital-first policy environment, India is emerging as both a testbed and scaling engine for next-generation supply chain innovations. Whether it's traceability for farm produce or authentication of pharmaceuticals, India is redefining how global trade tracks, verifies, and trusts its products.

At the heart of this transformation is GS1 India, established in 1996 by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in collaboration with leading industry bodies such as CII, FICCI, and ASSOCHAM. As the Indian affiliate of GS1 Global (headquartered in Brussels), GS1 India plays a pivotal role in enabling businesses to adopt standardised, interoperable systems that enhance efficiency, safety, and end-to-end visibility across physical and digital supply chains.

Indian manufacturers increasingly rely on GS1 standards not only to streamline domestic operations but to meet the stringent compliance and interoperability requirements of international markets. These standards—aligned with ISO and recognised worldwide—form the backbone of product identification in sectors such as retail, logistics, agriculture, and healthcare, supporting over two million companies globally.

“When GS1 India started in 1996, retailing was at a very nascent stage. Now, organised modern retailing is at about 13–14%. Trusted data is a need today in every area, every sector. So GS1 has been working closely with the industry to embark on the journey of building registries for the last decade. A centralised registry is a crucial ask from the industry as we ensure trust within the ecosystem,” said S. Swaminathan, CEO, GS1 India.

“Also, we are seeing an increase in digitisation and regulations, which is demanding more than ever for the next generation to be barcoded,” Swaminathan added.

The growing relevance of GS1 in India’s digital ecosystem is matched by its integration into the country’s economic vision.

“India is on the cusp of becoming the third-largest economy in the world, and along with this rapid economic growth comes a transformation in every sector – from healthcare and logistics to retail and e-commerce. As a nation, India is not only embracing digital technology, but also leading. GS1 India has been actively contributing to this vision, ensuring that global standards underpin the robustness and efficiency of the system,” said Vimal Anand, President, GS1 India, and Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

Private sector leaders echo this sentiment, acknowledging GS1’s role in enabling innovation and scalability.

“India is at an age which is the cusp of growth. The Indian retail industry is set to grow from US$1.2 trillion to US$2.5 trillion by 2030. GS1 is synonymous to trust and innovation. We have made a lot of innovations with the help of GS1 in India and GS1 has a great future ahead to provide something which is unprecedented and unique, and which can be adopted across the world. Ultimately, it's all about data and how we use the data to grow businesses, making GS1 a part and parcel of our daily lives,” said V. Subramaniam, Director, Reliance Retail.

In sectors like healthcare, GS1 standards have become indispensable. They enable end-to-end traceability of medicines, helping prevent the spread of counterfeit drugs and improving patient safety. In agriculture, these standards support farm-to-fork transparency—critical for exports to markets with strict regulatory frameworks like the EU and the United States.

E-commerce and D2C brands in India are also leveraging GS1 standards to sharpen inventory accuracy and operational agility.

Himanshu Chakrawarti, CEO, Stellaro Brands, praised GS1 India for its innovation and seamless collaboration in enabling e-commerce businesses. He emphasised the vast opportunity in India’s value segment where 1.4 billion consumers are transitioning into the middle class and creating a market for aspirational yet affordable D2C fashion brands. He spoke of GS1’s impact on inventory accuracy and interoperability, and urged further enhancements such as integrating QR-codes.

Unlike Western economies where barcode adoption followed the rise of organised retail, India is leapfrogging that trajectory. High-impact sectors like pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and public health are now driving the shift toward barcode-enabled digital transformation. These areas are not only vital to India’s domestic well-being but are also pillars of its export competitiveness. In this context, product traceability becomes more than a logistical requirement—it is a strategic imperative for consumer trust and global trade alignment.

“We’re here in India because of its strategic importance as a hub for digital transformation and supply chain modernisation,” said 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.”

Swaminathan added, “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 build a digital backbone for the global supply chain—a shift from fragmented data silos to trusted, interoperable ecosystems that enable real-time visibility and smarter decision-making across sectors.

Through initiatives like the Global Data Model, GS1 allows businesses to synchronise product information seamlessly across platforms, leading to more accurate e-commerce listings, reduced stockouts, and quicker product recalls. At the same time, Verified by GS1, a global registry of product identifiers, offers a way to verify the authenticity of products—critical in an era of online fraud, counterfeit goods, and grey market activity.

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

This vision for trusted, global identification is rapidly expanding beyond retail to sectors like healthcare, agriculture, construction, and logistics. The ultimate goal is to enable high-quality, interoperable, and secure data sharing that supports AI-led transformation.

“Today, how can we thrive in an AI world where trusted real-time data is essential to operate, trade and innovate? This is possible if we work collaboratively with industry, with governments, and across the GS1 organisation. We need to address the challenges industry faces globally across sectors such as retail and healthcare, and also expanding into agriculture, construction, rail, transport and logistics,” said Barbuat.

“We also need to strengthen the foundation of GS1 standards and services anchored in trusted identification, building a future of high-quality, interoperability and trusted data sharing,” Barbuat added.

As data becomes the foundation of modern supply chains, AI is poised to redefine the landscape. According to Srikanth Velamkanni, Co-Founder of Fractal Analytics, the field is shifting from building models to designing reasoning systems and autonomous agents. Drawing on Daniel Kahneman’s System-1 and System-2 thinking framework, he explained how companies are reimagining their workflows, upskilling talent, embedding responsible AI principles, and rearchitecting processes to stay competitive in this new paradigm.

Trust remains central to these transformations. Sandeep Hardikar, CEO of Network Science, highlighted the importance of transparency in AI-enabled ecosystems and GS1’s role in achieving it. “Building trust through transparency must be the cornerstone of AI-enabled systems,” Hardikar emphasised. He advocated for a shift from siloed, use-case-based thinking to a ‘metric-backwards’ strategy, where organisations define clear outcomes and then architect solutions around those metrics. “We need integrated technologies—AI, blockchain, IoT—paired with people, processes, and culture,” he added.

Together, these perspectives reinforce a single truth: the future of supply chains lies in trustworthy, interoperable data systems powered by intelligent technologies. GS1’s work is laying the groundwork for this future—one where businesses not only meet the demands of the present but shape a more connected, efficient, and transparent global economy.

Consumer safety, sustainability, and smart retail
The 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.