The food safety system in Georgia
Food safety regulations in Georgia are built on the Code covering the safety of food and animal feed, veterinary affairs and plant protection. The purpose of the Code is the protection of human life and health, of consumer interests, of animal health and welfare and of plant health, the definition of unified principles of state regulation in these fields, and the formation of an effective system of state control. The regulation extends to production, processing and distribution on the territory of Georgia, to primary production, to veterinary preparations, pesticides and agrochemicals, while controls linked to the customs border operate together with the Customs Code and other normative acts. If you operate on the food market, the requirements of this Code are your everyday legal environment.
What counts as harmful food and who decides
Article 11 of the Code sets out the foundational rules. Food placed on the market must satisfy the food safety requirements defined by Georgian legislation, and placing harmful food on the market is impermissible. Food is considered harmful if it endangers human life or health, or if it is not fit for human consumption. When safety is assessed, account must be taken of compliance with the requirements for production, processing, distribution and primary production; of the possibility of the final consumer using the food according to its intended purpose; of any information supplied to the consumer, including on the label, to avoid harmful effects; of not only the possible immediate, short-term or long-term effect of the food on the consumer but also its effect on subsequent generations; of possible cumulative toxic effect; and, for food intended for a special category of consumers, of the level of its impact on the health of that category.
The batch rule is particularly important: if food is harmful, the entire batch is considered harmful unless detailed inspection confirms that the remaining part of the batch satisfies the safety requirements. The costs of the inspection are reimbursed by the business operator. At the same time, formal compliance with legislatively defined requirements gives no absolute guarantee: where a justified suspicion exists, the Agency is authorized to restrict or prohibit the placing of the food on the market and to demand its withdrawal from the market.
Registration and recognition as a business operator
Under Article 13 of the Code, a business operator must register the relevant activity in the Register of Economic Activities and, upon starting the activity, stopping it or changing registered data, apply to the National Agency of the Public Registry. Operating without registration is prohibited. The production and processing of food of animal origin, the production and market placement of animal feed and the sphere of plant protection are subject to mandatory recognition, which the Agency carries out based on the results of inspection. Household production, primary production, traditional methods, highland regions and certain small business cases are excluded, so the first step is always the correct classification of your specific activity.