diff --git a/Makefile.packaging b/Makefile.packaging
index 74b6f336f..51175b646 100644
--- a/Makefile.packaging
+++ b/Makefile.packaging
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ AZURE_PACKAGES_DIR  := ./build/azure/packages
 BINARY_PATH         := $(BUILD_DIR)/$(BINARY_NAME)
 GPG_PUBLIC_KEY      := .key
 PACKAGE_BUILD       ?= 1
-PACKAGE_VERSION     := $(shell git describe --match "v[0-9]*" --abbrev=0 --tags)
+PACKAGE_VERSION     ?= $(shell echo ${VERSION} | tr -d 'v')
 TARBALL_NAME        := $(PACKAGE_PREFIX).tar.gz
 
 DEB_DISTROS         ?= ubuntu-plucky-25.04 ubuntu-noble-24.04 ubuntu-jammy-22.04 ubuntu-focal-20.04 debian-bookworm-12 debian-bullseye-11