Live at GS1: Wegmans On Board with 2D Barcodes; Kenvue Will be Ready
At GS1 Connect, Wegmans’ Paul Wawrzyniak revealed a supplier letter is coming on 2D barcode adoption, while Kenvue’s Prakash Christopher detailed how packaging is adapting now—signaling Sunrise 2027 is no longer distant, it’s underway.
(from left, speaking) Prakash Christopher, Kenvue; Maryann Moschides, ScanBuy; Scott Jackson, Datalogic; Paul Wawrzyniak, Wegmans; and Steven Keddie, GS1.
As the countdown to Sunrise 2027 accelerates, brand owners and CPGs face mounting pressure to adapt packaging for the dual-barcode era — where 2D codes will appear on-pack alongside traditional 1D UPCs. For packaging professionals, the shift isn’t just a regulatory hurdle; it’s a strategic opportunity to deliver richer data, support transparency, and streamline supply chains. But getting there requires tight coordination across packaging, IT, compliance, and brand teams — plus a clear understanding of what retailers need.
At the recent GS1 Connect panel “From Production to POS: 2D Barcodes for Brand Success,” brand and retailers demonstrated that they've been underway on this project for some time. Paul Wawrzyniak, Enterprise Systems Manager at Wegmans Food Markets, and Prakash Christopher, Director of Digital Identification and Traceability at Kenvue. Their perspectives—grounded in retail readiness and brand execution, respectively—offer a blueprint for how CPGs should be thinking about packaging today.
“We have not formally notified our suppliers... but we are discussing and talking about a letter to go out,” said Paul Wawrzyniak, Wegmans.
Wegmans: a Letter to Suppliers Is Being Drafted
While Wegmans hasn’t yet mandated 2D barcodes from its suppliers, the grocery retailer is laying the groundwork.
“We have not formally notified our suppliers... but we are discussing and talking about a letter to go out,” Wawrzyniak said. Two things are important: FIrst is confirming knowledge that this is coming, and communicating the value statements of why suppliers will want to embrace this.
Second, the letter, once finalized, will highlight not only the transition but also a key technical detail: application identifiers (AIs) — the GS1-defined data elements embedded within 2D codes.
“There are hundreds of them,” Wawrzyniak explained. “What we want is collaboration. We want to hear back from suppliers on which ones they’re selecting—and we’ll share the ones we believe are high value. Because of the density constraint, we won’t put 100 indicators into a QR code. But even three to five, if well chosen, can deliver huge value.”
That finite space on-pack is especially important for packaging engineers to consider—as QR codes can grow in size with more data, potentially disrupting established brand aesthetics and layouts. “It comes back to packaging, the marketing, and the esthetics,” he said. “Please get it very close to the 1D. In the future, someday you’ll be able to drop that.”
Inside Kenvue: Packaging at the Heart of Digital Enablement
Kenvue, the consumer health company behind brands like Band-Aid and Tylenol, is already deploying 2D barcodes—and doing so at scale. According to Prakash Christopher, the company is actively printing 2D codes on 200 to 300 SKUs, and the implications for packaging design have been significant.
“Your story might not be ready when you launch the product. But through the 2D code, you can continuously add digital content without changing the artwork. That’s a pretty big value for us," said Prakash Christopher, Kenvue.
“If I make a size [of a code] that is even a little smaller, the scanners will not be able to scan it,” he noted. “We built SOPs and work instructions to ensure the integrity is designed in. That goes from our brand portal all the way to the printers.”
Kenvue is starting with GS1 Digital Link barcodes that carry the GTIN (Global Trade Item Number), but Christopher said their healthcare processes already include additional elements like serial numbers and expiration dates — and that sophistication is gradually making its way into consumer-facing packs too.
What’s more, the company sees dynamic QR codes as a storytelling tool.
“Your story might not be ready when you launch the product,” Christopher said. “But through the 2D code, you can continuously add digital content without changing the artwork. That’s a pretty big value for us.”
Packaging Constraints, Collaboration, and the 50mm Rule
Both Christopher and Wawrzyniak emphasized the importance of code placement. Scanners, particularly at POS, must be able to prioritize the 2D code — and that only happens if it's close to the 1D.
“It’s less than milliseconds that a scanner picks up the code,” Wawrzyniak said. “If they’re far apart, your cashiers won’t catch the 2D. We want it to be the primary.” He added: “Be sensitive to the 50 millimeter rule — closer is better.”
Christopher echoed that sentiment, noting that limited real estate on-pack has prompted tough decisions:
“Can we remove some marketing content? Can we put the 2D barcode with the regulatory content? We’re trying to define the right message and slowly transition from physical to digital.”
Standards Make It Work: A Word from GS1
Steven Keedie of GS1 Global Office, who helped lead the panel, reminded attendees that the industry doesn’t have decades to refine this transition like it did with 1D barcodes.
“With the UPC, we had 30 years to get it straight. Now we’re living in a dual-barcode world,” he said. “The 2D barcode is going to be multi-purpose — not just for the consumer, but for POS, for regulators, and for the supply chain. And that requires collaboration, standardization, and testing.”
He also clarified a common misconception: UPCs aren’t going away.
“We’re not sunsetting the UPC. There will always be exceptions,” Keedie said. “But once we reach 90% readiness at retail, brands can start reclaiming their real estate by using a single 2D.”
What CPGs Should Do Now
Start internal pilots. Whether it’s a single SKU or an entire brand, start printing and testing 2D codes on real packaging.
Review GS1 application identifiers. Don’t just default to the obvious ones — explore which AIs add supply chain or consumer value.
Collaborate with retail partners. Especially around shared AIs and code placement strategies.
Build SOPs for artwork. Packaging design must be coordinated from marketing to the print floor, ensuring scannability and compliance.
Prepare for the long tail. From firmware upgrades to scanner calibration, don’t underestimate the systems-level work involved.
Solution Providers Step Up to Power the Transition
While retailers and brand owners are driving the demand for 2D barcode implementation, solution providers like Datalogic and Scanbuy are playing an equally critical role in making it technically feasible and scalable.
Scott Jackson, Product Manager at Datalogic, emphasized that the company has been ready for this transition for years. “Datalogic has been reading 2D codes for over 20 years,” he noted, “but for Sunrise 2027, we’ve updated our entire scanner portfolio to be GS1 Digital Link–compliant. Whether you’re using handhelds in a warehouse, bioptic scanners at checkout, or mobile computing in-store, all of our equipment can be configured to prioritize 2D codes and deliver the speed and accuracy retailers demand.”
He also pointed out the importance of firmware flexibility, especially during the transition phase. “Not every retailer or supplier is ready to process full 2D data. That’s why we offer configuration modes that allow you to extract just the GTIN initially, and then scale up to full digital link data when you’re ready.”
Maryann Moschides, Managing Director at Scanbuy, underscored how 2D barcodes unlock new storytelling and compliance opportunities for brands. “The QR code becomes a product advocate,” she said. “You can’t be in the aisle with every shopper, but your QR code can speak for you—sharing nutritional facts, sustainability claims, ingredient sourcing, and more.”
From Scanbuy’s perspective, success depends not just on technology but on strict adherence to global standards. “This only works if every player in the supply chain embeds the right digital syntax and AIs consistently,” Moschides stressed. “You can’t have a QR code mean one thing in a drugstore and another in a grocery store. GS1 standards are the glue that holds this together.” PW
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