Michelin retires Green Star sustainability award

Michelin is retiring the Green Star, its sustainability distinction for restaurants, as it shifts the Michelin Guide toward a broader editorial focus spanning gastronomy, hospitality and wine. The company said on May 18 that the Green Star “will come to an end” as it launches “Mindful Voices,” a new global editorial platform. The Green Star was introduced in 2020 to recognize restaurants for environmental and ethical practices, and Michelin had continued to publish Green Star features on its guide site as recently as May. Restaurant industry outlets reported the change on May 19, and Le Monde linked it to Michelin’s wider push to become a benchmark for the “art of living.” ### When did Michelin say the Green Star was ending? Michelin said in a May 18 statement that “the Green Star, which was limited to gastronomy, will come to an end” alongside the launch of Mindful Voices. The company described the new project as an editorial venture designed to spotlight people proposing “new methods within gastronomy, hospitality and wine.” (michelin.com) Restaurant Ranking, The Caterer and other trade publications reported the announcement on May 19, saying Michelin was discontinuing the Green Star after six years. The Caterer reported that in Great Britain and Ireland the Green Star would be “gradually phased out,” with 37 green-starred restaurants set to lose the accolade at the end of 2026. (michelin.com) ### What was the Green Star supposed to recognize? Michelin introduced the Green Star in 2020 as a sustainability distinction for restaurants. Michelin’s own Green Star pages say the award highlighted restaurants with a strong environmental commitment and sustainable gastronomy practices. Michelin’s guide site still hosts a large archive of Green Star and Green Star Community articles across markets including the United States, Europe and Asia. (restaurant-ranking.com) Those pages profile restaurants on sourcing, waste reduction, farming, and other environmental practices, showing that the Green Star had become both an award and an editorial category inside the guide. (guide.michelin.com) ### What is replacing it? Mindful Voices is not presented by Michelin as a direct one-for-one award replacement. Michelin said the new initiative will “shine a light on individuals” across gastronomy, hospitality and wine, rather than maintain a restaurant-only sustainability accolade. (guide.michelin.com) Michelin’s public-facing guide site has already begun promoting Mindful Voices on its homepage. The company says the project draws on its expansion into hotels and wine and its presence in more than 60 destinations. ### Why is Michelin broadening the guide now? Le Monde reported on May 19 that Michelin is trying to transform the guide into a broader global benchmark for the “art of living.” Michelin’s own statement on Mindful Voices says the move comes “in step with” the guide’s recent expansion into hospitality and wine, as well as its international growth. (michelin.com) (guide.michelin.com) Michelin has spent the past two years widening the guide beyond restaurant stars. The guide site now gives prominent placement to Michelin Keys for hotels, travel features and lifestyle coverage alongside restaurant selections. ### What does this change for restaurants that already had Green Stars? Trade publications said the immediate effect is clearest in Britain and Ireland, where 37 restaurants currently holding Green Stars are expected to lose the accolade at the end of this year. (lemonde.fr) Michelin has not, in the material reviewed, published a market-by-market timetable beyond saying the Green Star will end in parallel with the global rollout of Mindful Voices. (guide.michelin.com) Michelin said the first step in the Mindful Voices rollout will take place on June 1, 2026, at the Nordic Countries Ceremony in Copenhagen. Michelin’s guide homepage also lists the inaugural Michelin Guide Southwest ceremony in Las Vegas for August 26, another sign that the company’s guide business is continuing to expand as the Green Star is withdrawn. (michelin.com) (thecaterer.com)