Michelin Guide retires Green Star

The Michelin Guide is ending its Green Star award, the sustainability badge it introduced in 2020 for restaurants with environmentally focused practices, according to Michelin and a May 18 report by The Caterer. The change closes a separate recognition track that had sat alongside Michelin’s traditional star system and Bib Gourmand awards. Michelin said the Green Star will be “gradually phased out” and replaced not by another award, but by broader editorial coverage. The company said that coverage will begin next month under a new initiative called “Mindful Voices.” ### When did Michelin make the change, and what exactly is ending? The Caterer reported on May 18 that Michelin had announced the retirement of the Green Star, which had been awarded to restaurants for sustainable gastronomy. Michelin launched the distinction in 2020 and had added new recipients annually with each new guide edition, according to The Caterer and Michelin’s own Green Star pages. (thecaterer.com) The Green Star had been presented as a formal accolade with its own icon and branding. Michelin’s existing Green Star Community pages still describe restaurants and chefs through that label, showing how the award had become part of the guide’s editorial and promotional structure before the decision to retire it. ### Which restaurants lose the badge first? (thecaterer.com) The Caterer said 37 Green Star restaurants in Great Britain and Ireland are set to lose the accolade at the end of 2026. That follows Michelin’s February 2026 guide ceremony in Dublin, where seven new Green Stars had been announced for the region, bringing the total to 37 at the time. (guide.michelin.com) Michelin had previously promoted Green Star winners as part of its annual guide rollouts. In October 2025, The Caterer reported that recipients of new Michelin stars, Green Stars and special awards would all be announced at the 2026 Great Britain and Ireland ceremony. That makes the retirement a reversal from the way Michelin had recently packaged the award in its public events. (thecaterer.com) ### What is Michelin putting in its place? Michelin said it is launching an editorial initiative called “Mindful Voices” in place of the Green Star program, according to The Caterer. The new project will “highlight and share the stories and pioneering practices of chefs, hoteliers and wine producers,” extending beyond restaurants alone. (thecaterer.com) Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the Michelin Guide, told The Caterer that “Mindful Voices will give a platform to all those who are rewriting the rules in their respective fields.” He said the framework reflects what Michelin inspection teams see “first-hand” and is meant to amplify voices across gastronomy, hospitality and wine. (thecaterer.com) ### Is Mindful Voices another Michelin award? Michelin said no new formal sustainability accolade is replacing the Green Star. The Caterer reported that Mindful Voices “is not a formal accolade and will have no accompanying icon or logo,” unlike the Green Star. That means restaurants previously identified with the Green Star will no longer carry a separate Michelin sustainability badge once the phaseout is complete. (thecaterer.com) Michelin’s current site still hosts Green Star articles and community pages, but the company said the standalone award itself is ending. ### Where will the new approach show up first? (thecaterer.com) Michelin said Mindful Voices is scheduled to launch next month at the Michelin Guide Nordics ceremony in Copenhagen, Denmark, according to The Caterer. Michelin has not announced a replacement icon, score or parallel designation for sustainability in the material reviewed. The next concrete milestone is that Copenhagen launch, where Michelin said the new editorial series will begin and the Green Star’s phaseout will move from announcement to implementation. (thecaterer.com)