Digital product passport: US association publishes glossary on clothing traceability

The US trade association American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) published its first ‘Global Apparel, Footwear & Accessories Glossary of Traceability Terms’ last week. This voluntary, open-source reference defines the vocabulary of supply chain traceability, from “supply chain” to “forensic traceability.”

For brand owners dealing with the EU’s Digital Product Passport (DPP), the timing is no coincidence. The DPP is required under the Ecodesign Regulation for Sustainable Products (ESPR). It will require brands to attach structured and verifiable lifecycle data to their products. But before data can flow, everyone in the chain – brands, manufacturers, software providers and regulators – must mean the same thing when they say the same thing. The glossary targets exactly this gap.

However, it is not a handbook for the DPP. The AAFA document defines the physical supply chain and associated documentation such as stages, roles, materials and trade documents. There is a clear US focus. The focus is on background checks and forensic methods associated with US anti-forced labor legislation. In contrast, the EU framework is a binding law focused on sustainability and circular economy data. Both overlap in common concepts but have different orientations.

The effects go both ways. For US brands selling to Europe, the glossary provides an introduction to DPP readiness in familiar language. For European brands, it signals that the U.S. industry wants a seat at the table in shaping global traceability standards. It is also a chance to align terminology before ISO develops its global framework from 2028.

The risk is real: if the AAFA and EU terms drift apart, the industry will end up with a third dialect instead of a common one.