The data model and the associated validation rules form the standardized product sheet. They are changed 4x / year and such a change is called a release.
During a release, product features (attributes) or values in code lists can be added, changed or removed.
The input instructions can also change, as a result of which the validation rules that check whether the product sheet is completed completely and correctly, are also adjusted.
On 25th February 2023 the next release of the GDSN standard and of the Benelux FMCG data model will take place. In the release notes below you will find all changes and in the validation overview you will find the validations that will be active at that time.
| Documentation | Language | Type | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GDSN release notes FMCG | English | XLSX | Download |
| FMCG Datamodel 3.1.21 | English | XLSX | Download |
| Overview of validation rules for the Benelux FMCG | English | XLSX | Download |
Previous releases
The data model determines which product attributes can be mentioned in the standardised product sheet.
The validation rules determine among others which of those product attributes (in certain cases) can always be entered, in certain cases, or optionally.
During a release, product characteristics (attributes) or values in code lists can be added, changed or deleted.
The entry instructions may also change, which will modify the validation rules that check whether the product sheet is filled in completely and correctly.
With each release, all new and existing product sheets must be modified or completed in accordance with the new agreements.
The new validation rules also check the completeness and correctness of the product sheets according to the new agreements.
Some product sheets, which were published without errors until now, may show errors from onwards. They are therefore blocked and can not (anymore) be received by supermarkets, wholesalers, food service providers or operators and solutions providers who retrieve product information from My Product Manager. Moreover, these are not published to the GDSN network. Once the errors have been eliminated, they are made available again.
Important!
If you only register/receive label data of pre-packed food products in My Product Manager, then it’s possible that not all changes apply to your product sheets. In that case, leave aside all changes in product attributes that do not belong to the label data.
• In the data model, on the tab "user instructions", you will find an explanation on how to filter on only the label data (= B2C data model).
• If you are not sure whether you are registering only label data or all product data, then search for your company in this user list
3 weeks before the release date, the release will be simulated on your current product sheets. You will find the result of this simulation in the simulation report.
So you can fix errors and/or incompleteness before the effective release takes place.
More information on the functioning of the simulation report can be found in Chapter 2 of the manual “How do I improve my product sheets?”
If a product is no longer being produced and therefore disappeared from the market, the product sheet in My Product Manager must be given the status "discontinued".
This way the product sheet becomes invisible to your trading partners who get product info from My Product Manager or a GDSN-datapool.
Moreover, it means that the data quality of those sheets is no longer checked:
• The results of the validation rules no longer count in the supplier report in My Product Manager.
• Those product sheets are no longer selected for the audit programme.
The procedure for changing the status of a product sheet to "discontinued" depends on your setup.
Via the web interface, fill in the field "End availability date/time" with the date of today or an anterior date. With the "bulk edit" function, you can do this for several products at the same time.
More information can be found in Chapter 8 of the "My Product Manager manual"
Important!
You cannot change the status of product sheets with error messages to "discontinued" before resolving all the errors. If this causes too much unnecessary work, you can e-mail an Excel file to our helpdesk.
This Excel file should contain for each product at least one column with the GTIN and another column with the GLN of the information provider.
- In the field linked to the GDSN field 'endAvailabilityDateTime', enter the date of today or an anterior date.
- Release the product sheet to the network.
- Wait at least 30 minutes to be sure the change has been made.
- Finally, unpublish the product sheet.
For problems or more information, please contact the operator the data pool to which you are connected. For the GS1 GDSN data pool Central DataBank (CDB) this is GS1 Belgium & Luxembourg.