On 26 June 1974, the very first scan of a barcode at Marsh Supermarket in Ohio, USA, transformed grocery checkout.
50 years ago, the GS1 barcode was scanned for the first time, and since then each "beep" makes it easier and safer to buy and sell products.
Industry leaders came together to transform the way we shop and revolutionized the barcode. From that point forward, a simple scan at checkout connected a physical product to its digital identity—vital information that could be shared throughout the supply chain and used to improve the shopping experience. The trust in the GS1 standards behind it—the universal trust for everyone everywhere.
Key Milestones in GS1 History
1973
On 3 April 1973, industry leaders in the U.S. retail grocery sector created the barcode—an innovation that has revolutionised our modern economy and society.
1974
The U.S.-based Uniform Code Council (UCC) is appointed as administrator of the new Universal Product Code (U.P.C) barcode. On 26 June—in a Marsh supermarket located in Ohio—a pack of Wrigley's gum becomes the first product in the world to be scanned with a barcode.
1977
The European Article Numbering Association (EAN®) is established as an international, not-for-profit standards organisation in Brussels, Belgium. The new EAN barcode is fully-compatible with the U.P.C barcode in the U.S.
1995
GS1 expands into the healthcare sector, deploying standards to increase patient safety, drive supply chain efficiencies—and improve the identification and traceability of medical products.
2005
The UCC and EAN merge, creating a single, international organisation with 101 local GS1 Member Organisations.
2016
The BBC names the GS1 barcode one of "the 50 things that made the world economy".
2020
The GS1 Digital Link standard leverages QR codes to help connect consumers to rich amounts of brand-authorised data on the web, including product information, promotions, ingredients, recipes—and more.
2023
GS1 celebrates the 50th anniversary of the barcode together with its family of 116 local GS1 Member Organisations (MOs). Over 1 billion products now carry GS1 barcodes that are scanned billions of times every day around the world.
2024
GS1 celebrates the 50th anniversary of the first barcode scan and embraces the future with the next generation barcodes - QR Codes powered by GS1