Food Loss and Waste (FLW) is one of the critical issues related to waste management in Georgia. A large amount of food still suitable for human consumption is wasted by Food Business Operators (FBOs) and large food retailers in particular due to the packaging or quality issues, expiration date, excess supply and consumption habits, which results in significant economic losses for these FBOs.

On November 10, 2021, ISET Policy Institute introduced ReforMeter, the platform designed as a Georgian Reform Progress Tracking System, one which critically informs beneficiaries and stakeholders about how the latest economic reforms are developing.

In October 2021, the cost of cooking one standard Imeretian khachapuri increased both annually and monthly, ranging between 4.3 GEL (Kutaisi) and 5.5 GEL (Telavi), with an average cost of 5.0 GEL. The latest average price is 14.9% higher than October 2020. In month-to-month development, the price of a khachapuri is 4.2% higher, compared to the previous month.

For the 4th quarter of 2021, business confidence in Georgia decreased slightly (by 5.8 index points) and reached 30.6. The highest decrease in business confidence is observed in construction (-21.0), service (-15.3), and agriculture (-8.8) sectors. A negative change in BCI for Q4 2021 was driven by worsened future expectations and past performance.

At the event, ISET Policy Institute will introduce ReforMeter, a Georgian Reform Progress Tracking System, a platform to inform beneficiaries and stakeholders on how new reform efforts by the Georgian government have progressed against their intended objectives.