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# Sustainability Data

> Product information describing environmental and social characteristics, such as material composition, recycled content, durability, reparability and carbon footprint.

## Definition

Structured product information describing environmental and social characteristics, including
material composition, substances of concern, recycled content, durability, reparability, energy
performance, carbon footprint and, where relevant, supply chain due diligence evidence.

## Expanded Explanation

Sustainability data differs from ordinary product attributes in that most of it is not observable in
the finished item. Recycled content, emissions and sourcing conditions are properties of a process
upstream, so the value has to be obtained from suppliers and supported by evidence rather than
measured at the point of assembly.

That evidence has structure. A declared figure needs a defined calculation method, a boundary
statement covering what is included, a period of validity, and a level of granularity, since a
figure valid for one batch is often not valid for another. Standards such as ISO 14067 for product
carbon footprint and ISO 14025 for environmental declarations exist to make such figures comparable.

Legislation increasingly makes these declarations enforceable. The Ecodesign for Sustainable
Products Regulation allows information requirements to be imposed through delegated acts, and the
directive on empowering consumers for the green transition, Directive (EU) 2024/825, restricts
generic environmental claims that are not substantiated.

## Why It Matters

Sustainability data is the part of a passport most likely to be wrong, because it originates outside
the organisation and is often collected as unstructured attachments. Treating it as governed data,
with source, method and validity recorded alongside the value, is what makes a published claim
defensible.

## Common Misconceptions

#### A supplier certificate is the data

A certificate is evidence for a value, not the value itself. Passports require structured, machine
readable fields, and a scanned document cannot be validated, compared or aggregated.

## Related Terms

* [Product Data](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/product-data)
* [Circular Economy](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/circular-economy)
* [Product Lifecycle](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/product-lifecycle)
* [Product Traceability](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/product-traceability)

## Related Knowledge Base Articles

* [What Is a Digital Product Passport?](/docs/knowledge-base/digital-product-passports/what-is-a-digital-product-passport)
* [Who Needs a Digital Product Passport?](/docs/knowledge-base/digital-product-passports/who-needs-a-digital-product-passport)

## Related Articles

* [Circular Economy](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/circular-economy)
* [Product Data](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/product-data)
* [Product Lifecycle](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/product-lifecycle)
* [Authoritative Source](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/authoritative-source)
* [Data Architecture](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/data-architecture)
* [ESPR](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/espr)
* [Golden Record](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/golden-record)
* [Product Data Governance](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/data-governance)

## See Also

* [Governance & Assurance](/docs/knowledge-base/compliance-frameworks/overview)
* [Implementation](/docs/knowledge-base/implementation/overview)

## References

* Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, Official Journal of the European Union:
  [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1781/oj](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2024/1781/oj)
* Directive (EU) 2024/825 on empowering consumers for the green transition:
  [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/825/oj](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/825/oj)
* ISO 14067, greenhouse gases, carbon footprint of products:
  [https://www.iso.org/standard/71206.html](https://www.iso.org/standard/71206.html)

## About This Article

About This Article

<dl>
  <dt>
    Last Reviewed
  </dt>

  <dd>
    2026-08-07
  </dd>

  <dt>
    Next Scheduled Review
  </dt>

  <dd>
    2027-08-07
  </dd>

  <dt>
    Article Version
  </dt>

  <dd>
    1.0
  </dd>
</dl>

tieback Knowledge is a continuously maintained reference library covering Digital Product
Passports, product traceability, product compliance and related regulations. Articles are
reviewed regularly as legislation, standards and implementation guidance evolve.

## Related Docs

* [Governance & Assurance](/docs/knowledge-base/compliance-frameworks/overview)
* [Implementation](/docs/knowledge-base/implementation/overview)
* [Digital Product Passports](/docs/knowledge-base/digital-product-passports/overview)
* [Glossary](/docs/knowledge-base/glossary/overview)