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The authorities stated that Georgia has clean soil and little reliance on agricultural chemicals. (...)

Forestry policy is contained in the National Forest Concept for Georgia, adopted by Parliament in December 2013. The Concept applies to all forests in Georgia, irrespective of their ownership and form of management. In accordance with the Concept, the legislative and institutional framework is being revised. The three key institutions under the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resource Protection are:
• the Forest Policy Service, which is responsible for forestry policy-making, including main strategies;
• the National Forestry Agency, which is responsible for the management of forests; and
• the Environmental Supervision Department, which is in charge of supervising activities related to forestry.

The Government is preparing a new Forestry Code to ensure the protection and sustainable use of forests. The draft law sets out principles for sustainable management of forests, [10] states different forest property schemes, and provides a new approach to forest utilization. The drafting process was facilitated by the World Bank. The authorities stated that the first draft of the Law would be ready by August 2015.

[10] Sustainable management of forests is the guiding principle of the Concept, meaning "the stewardship and use of forests and forest lands in a way, and at a rate, that maintains their biodiversity, productivity, regeneration capacity, vitality and their potential to fulfill now and in the future, relevant ecological, economic and social functions at local, national, and global levels, and that does not cause damage to other ecosystems”.

The authorities stated that several programmes are being conducted, on sustainable management of biodiversity and forestry, as well as on controlling illegal activities in the forestry sector. Financial support comes from the Georgian Government, and partner and donor organizations from Austria, Finland, Germany, the EU, and international organizations such as GEF (Global Environment Facility)/UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme), and the UNECE/FAO. Besides, two Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) were signed, between the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection of Georgia, National Forest Agency, and their counterparts in Austria and Germany on the forest sector reform and development programmes.

The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Protection is also in charge of various fishery issues. The Service of Biodiversity Protection, the Department of Environmental Permits, the Environmental Supervision Department, and the National Environment Agency are all in charge of elaborating management plans, approving fishing quotas, approving and issuing fishing permits, and controlling the implementation of laws, rules and regulations.

Pursuant to the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA), Georgia has enacted, with the intent of approximation with EU legislation, numerous legislative amendments in the Food/Feed Safety, Veterinary and Plant Protection Code of Georgia as well as enacted crucial new legislature in order to improve food/feed safety and consumer protection, including mandatory labelling of genetically modified products (GMO), (...)

(...) Genetically modified organisms for food/feed use and genetically modified products must be labelled if the genetically modified components contained therein exceed 0.9% of the total mass as prescribed by the Law on the Labelling of Genetically Modified Organisms for Food/Animal Feed Use and of Genetically Modified Products Derived Therefrom.

The introduction of living modified organisms (LMOs) into Georgia is prohibited, according to the Law on Living Modified Organisms. A living modified organism may be placed on the Georgian market if it belongs to the species of LMOs approved by the Minister of Environment and National Resources Protection (Ministerial Order No. 198 of 24 April 2015). (...)

Fishing licences are awarded via an auction system. Fishermen with licences must pay taxes according to the annual approved quotas (before 2010, they paid taxes according to the number of fish caught). The licensees were required to finance the researches for setting quotas.

In accordance with the conditions listed in the licences, Georgian companies are allowed to hire foreign fishing vessels to cover the annual quotas. During the first five years, the licensees were allowed to process two-thirds of fish caught in Georgia and to export the rest without processing. The licensees are required to deliver 10% of annual quotas to the local small fishing companies. The authorities stated that small local fishing companies comprise the 23 small fishing vessels belonging to small local fishing companies, and 20 Turkish vessels hired by small local companies.