21/09/2026
The 2027 Sunrise gets described as a deadline. It is closer to a readiness threshold.
GS1's implementation guideline keeps a linear barcode on-pack alongside the 2D code until 2D-capable point-of-sale scanning reaches its 90% threshold. Your existing barcode is not being switched off on a date.
Brands are moving anyway, and the consumer data explains why. A 2025 GS1 US survey found 79% of US consumers are more likely to buy a product with a scannable QR code that provides additional information, 77% say product information matters to a purchase, and 62% would spend more on a product that offers detailed information.
The mechanism is elegant. One 2D barcode carries the GTIN and resolves to different destinations for different audiences: point of sale, consumer information, regulatory data, supply-chain systems.
Here is the part worth being precise about. A GS1 Digital Link code does not authenticate a product. It is open, readable and reproducible by design, because that is what an open standard is for. Interoperability is not a security property.
Which means the migration is the right moment to add the layer it was never meant to provide: a unit-level identity that cannot be reproduced.
How far along is your 2D plan?