What is UNTP?
The UN Transparency Protocol is a UN/CEFACT global standard, developed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, supporting governments and industry on practical measures to counter greenwashing through supply chain traceability. It establishes standardised methods for structuring and accessing supply chain information so product data can be interpreted consistently across platforms and regions, rather than locked into proprietary systems. The standard is free to use and openly governed. More at untp.unece.org.
Is UNTP the same as the EU's Digital Product Passport requirements?
Connected but separate. UNTP is a worldwide standard, not EU-specific legislation. The EU's ESPR regulation mandates Digital Product Passports, with technical specifications published by CEN/CENELEC in 2026 defining implementation requirements within EU markets. GCN addresses both — UNTP for international compatibility, EU standards for regional compliance.
Is GCN a UNTP Registered Software Vendor?
Yes. GCN holds UNTP Registered Software Vendor status and is an Expert Working Group Partner for the EU Commission's CIRPASS-2 initiative. Verifiable at UNTP's public registry: untp.unece.org/docs/implementations/swi.
What are DPPs, DTEs and DCCs — and where is GCN with each?
UNTP defines three independent credential types. DPP (Digital Product Passport) — the product record itself; GCN's implementation uses real UNTP vocabulary in its public JSON-LD output today. DTE (Digital Traceability Event) — a record of lifecycle events like resale, repair, sorting and recycling; GCN captures this internally (Downstream, Sorting, End-of-Life) but keeps it to authenticated access only for now — public DTE output is planned. DCC (Digital Conformity Credential) — independent certification and audit documentation; GCN's Credential Library holds this material today, with standalone signed DCC documents on the roadmap alongside the cryptographic signing infrastructure they require.
What does "UNTP-aligned" actually mean for GCN's platform today?
GCN produces UNTP-aligned JSON-LD for Digital Product Passports, using UNTP's core conformity vocabulary (performanceClaim, conformityTopic) in that output. The public resolver behind every Product ID and QR code returns real UNTP Core Vocabulary terms: materialProvenance (fibre and material information), producedAtFacility (facility documentation), performanceClaim and conformityTopic (certification evidence). UNTP's specification is still evolving toward v1.0 in 2026, and GCN's implementation is built to track that evolution rather than lock to one version. Standalone signed Digital Conformity Credentials and public Digital Traceability Event output are planned as UNTP's spec and the W3C Verifiable Credentials infrastructure they need mature. GCN would rather be precise about what's live today than overstate it.
Is there a live example I can see?
Yes — a demo product record is public at this resolver link, showing GCN's real public JSON-LD output on a clearly-labelled demonstration product with no real client data.
Where can I find UNTP's sector-specific resources for textiles?
UNTP maintains dedicated textiles and fashion resources at textiles.untp.unece.org, including pilots, credential frameworks and industry guidance relevant to GCN's work.
Does GCN need to use UNTP identifiers like GTINs?
No. UNTP is a data structure standard, not an identifier requirement. GCN supports GS1 Digital Link for organisations that already have GTINs, and provides its own product identifiers for those that don't — every product gets a real, working identifier either way.