Amsterdam-based climate tech company Aware has developed a digital product passport that tracks sustainable textiles both physically and digitally throughout every step of the chain.
The digital passport allows brands to provide trustworthy information about the sustainability of their products and tracking their true environmental impact, helping to restore consumer trust.
Existing certification bodies are under pressure due to errors and fraud, and consumers and brands are calling for more transparency and reliability. Aware aims to provide an adequate answer by using real data that promotes circularity and helps brands and consumers make more conscious choices for the benefit of people and the planet.
By mapping the entire brand chain, Aware makes it possible for each maker to directly check and share information, creating a transparent network of makers that can be trusted by both brands and consumers. A physical tracer embedded in the sustainable fibre can be read by any manufacturing partner in the chain with a special Aware hand scanner.
Suppliers share proprietary information on the new, public blockchain platform developed by Aware. Once uploaded, the information is immediately visible and cannot be changed on the public blockchain of Aware, rendering fraud useless.
The virtual chain created corresponds to the new EU legislation that goes into effect by 2030. Consumers can also see the entire chain and its impact on their phones with a scan of a QR code on the label of the sustainable product.
Feico van der Veen, founder and managing director of Aware, said: “Getting first-hand data ultimately creates a transparent network of makers that can be trusted by both brands and consumers.”
Aware Virtual ID was developed in 2020, and the platform is now live after several pilots with launching partners.
