Green Restaurant Association

What Green Restaurant Association does

Green Restaurant Association (GRA) is a U.S.-based international nonprofit organization founded in 1990 by CEO Michael Oshman and headquartered in Miami, Florida. The organization pioneered the Green Restaurant® certification movement and operates as the sole provider of the only official Certified Green Restaurants® mark in the country. GRA certifies restaurants, food service operators, manufacturers, distributors, and service providers using its proprietary GreenPoints™ scoring system, which evaluates environmental performance across eight categories: Energy, Water, Waste, Food, Chemicals, Disposables, Building, and Education. Certifications are issued on a four-tier (1 to 4 Star) basis, supplemented by specialty badges such as Near-Zero Waste, Clean Chemicals, Vegan, Vegetarian, Sustainable Seafood, and SustainaBuild.

GRA's product and service platform spans multiple revenue streams: restaurant certification fees (quote-based, recurring), product and service certification fees for vendors, employee accreditation (GRAE) at $20 per test, and donations. Distribution is driven by Sustainability Consultants who guide clients through a five-step certification process (assessment, strategizing, implementation, certification, communication), supplemented by the Green My Restaurant interactive assessment tool, a quarterly newsletter (Green Restaurant News™) reaching 45,000+ industry professionals, and a 2026 strategic partnership with the Texas Restaurant Association. The organization's reach extends to Certified Green Restaurants in 50 states, territories, and provinces, with marquee enterprise clients including SSP America (260+ restaurants across 23 airports), Compass Group (167 restaurants), Harvard University (19 restaurants), and Flik Hospitality (26 K-12 schools). Additional consumer-facing and ecosystem products include Tip the Planet (3% bill offset), the Pledge for the Planet program, and the Sustainable Recipes Platform.

Name

Green Restaurant Association

Legal name

Green Restaurant Association

Website

https://dinegreen.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Green Restaurant Association is a 1990-founded nonprofit that certifies restaurants, vendors, and food service operators using its proprietary GreenPoints™ scoring system across eight environmental categories. It serves enterprise clients including SSP America, Compass Group, Harvard University, and independents across 50 states and Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Certification Services

SIC

Services-Services, Nec (8900)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainability & Environmental Certifications (Carbon, Water, Regenerative) (AFALAMAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Certification Program Administration & Scheme Management (Standard Owners) (AFALACAC), Pre-Assessment, Gap Assessment & Certification Readiness Services (AFALACAE)

Keywords

• Environmental certification services
• Restaurant sustainability certification
• Green restaurant certification
• Sustainability consulting services
• Environmental scoring system

Headquarters

HQ city

Miami

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Certification Fees: Fees for restaurants to become Certified Green Restaurants through assessment, consultation, and certification process
2. Product & Service Certification: Fees for manufacturers and distributors to certify their green products and services
3. Employee Accreditation: $20 per employee for Green Restaurant Accredited Employee (GRAE) certification test and accreditation
4. Donations: One-time and monthly donation options for supporters of the organization

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

The Green Restaurant Association certifies restaurants and food service operators for environmental sustainability through its proprietary GreenPoints™ scoring system, awarding Certified Green Restaurant® designations at 1–4 Star levels across eight environmental categories. It also certifies manufacturers, distributors, service providers, and individual restaurant employees, with a 5-step certification process supported by expert Sustainability Consultants.

Product overview

The Green Restaurant Association operates a unified certification platform centered on the Certified Green Restaurant® program, which awards restaurants 1-4 star ratings based on GreenPoints™ earned across eight environmental categories (Energy, Water, Waste, Food, Chemicals, Disposables, Building, and Education). The platform includes complementary services: Green My Restaurant (assessment tool), employee accreditation (GRAE), vendor/product certification for manufacturers and distributors, Tip the Planet (consumer offset feature), Green Restaurant News™ (quarterly publication), and the Sustainable Recipes platform. The company also offers the Pledge for the Planet program and a Sustainability Internship. Founded in 1990, GRA has certified restaurants across 47 states and Canada.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Certified Green Restaurant® Certification The primary certification program that awards restaurants with Level 1–4 Star ratings based on GreenPoints™ earned across eight environmental categories (Energy, Water, Waste, Food, Chemicals, Disposables, Building, and Education). Designed for restaurants, restaurant chains, corporate cafeterias, university dining, K-12 cafeterias, caterers, and airport restaurants.
• Green My Restaurant Tool An interactive assessment tool that helps restaurants discover their sustainability baseline by evaluating their environmental practices across GRA's categories before pursuing certification.
• Green Restaurant Accredited Employee (GRAE) An employee accreditation program offering sustainability education across six environmental categories with a test-based certification ($20 cost, 39 questions, must answer 35 correctly to pass). For restaurant employees seeking professional sustainability credentials.
• Certified Green Product Certification Product certification program for manufacturers of green products, including categories for Energy, Water, Reusables, Disposables, Food and Beverage, Chemicals, Grease Collector, Linens, Pest Control, Recycler, and Composter. Enables manufacturers to differentiate and gain credibility through GRA endorsement.
• Certified Green Distributor™ Program Certification program for distributors of green products, allowing restaurants to easily identify and source certified sustainable products from approved distributors.
• Certified Green Service Program Certification program for service providers (composting, recycling, pest control, etc.) that serve restaurants, allowing these vendors to demonstrate environmental sustainability credentials.

Quantifiable outcome

• Boloco restaurants achieved $2,000-$8,000 savings in annual waste hauling fees
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Texas Restaurant AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 January 2026Partnership between GRA and TRA to help Texas restaurants strengthen operations through Certified Green Restaurant certification. Includes free webinars, Sustainability Consultants, and marketing support. Aimed at preparing Texas restaurants for increased attention during 2026 global soccer events. In early 2026, GRA reached 10% of its partnership goal with Texas restaurants.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Rainforest Alliance: International nonprofit that certifies sustainable sourcing in agriculture, forestry, and tourism. Comparable to GRA's supplier-side certification (e.g., sustainable seafood) and tiered certification model, but operates at upstream supply-chain level.
• NSF International: Global public-health and safety organization that certifies products, foodservice equipment, and foods against safety and sustainability standards — comparable to GRA's Certified Green Product and Service programs as a more institutional competitor.
• U.S. Green Building Council (LEED): Operator of the LEED green-building certification system — a comparable standards-setter nonprofit that administers tiered certification across categories, applies to commercial buildings that house restaurants but operates at the building rather than operator level.
• ENERGY STAR (U.S. EPA): Government-backed energy efficiency certification program. Highly comparable to GRA's Energy category of GreenPoints™ and a credible free alternative for restaurants seeking energy-focused sustainability credentials.
• USDA Organic: Federal organic certification program covering food and agricultural products. Comparable to GRA's Food category and specialty badges (Vegan, Vegetarian), with significantly higher regulatory authority but no operator-level certification.

Direct peers

• Green Seal: Independent nonprofit that certifies products, services, and businesses against science-based environmental standards — directly comparable to GRA's third-party sustainability certification model, though focused on products/facilities rather than restaurants.
• Fair Trade USA: Nonprofit certifying products and supply chains against social and environmental standards. Closely comparable to GRA's Certified Green Product program in structure (third-party mark, fee-based certification, recurring audits).
• SCS Global Services: For-profit third-party certifier of environmental, sustainability, food-safety, and quality claims. Closely comparable service offering to GRA's product/distributor/service certification programs, but operates across many industries at a larger commercial scale.
• Marine Stewardship Council: International nonprofit running the MSC sustainable-seafood eco-label — directly comparable to GRA's Certified Green Product certification structure (third-party mark, tiered, science-based) and a likely GRA specialty-badge substitute for restaurants sourcing seafood.
• B Lab (Certified B Corporation): Nonprofit certifier that assesses companies holically across environmental, social, and governance performance — directly comparable governance structure and tiered certification methodology to GRA, though with broader industry scope.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/dinegreen
• Facebookfacebook.com/greenrestaurantassociation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/green-restaurant-association
• Instagraminstagram.com/greenrestaurantassociation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Green Restaurant Association