Sustainable Investing

At Milford, we are committed to creating a more sustainable future by driving companies we invest in to improve the sustainability of their practices.

We always consider ESG

We undertake in depth analysis  of the Environmental, Social  and Governance (ESG)  credentials of every company we invest in.

We play our part through engaging

We believe we can make the biggest impact by engaging with companies to address sustainability issues and drive positive change.

We do not invest in companies that fail to meet our standards

Companies that do not meet our minimum standard of sustainable practices are added to our exclusion list.

Milford’s approach to

sustainable investing explained

Watch as Frances Sweetman, Head of Sustainable Investment; Grace O’Hanlon, Sustainable Investment Analyst and Nick Morgan, Sustainable Investment Analyst talk through our approach to sustainable investing.

Sustainable investing is part of

our heritage

As active managers, we have always undertaken detailed analysis to find the best companies, including their environmental, social and governance performance.

This work is at the core of our investment decision-making process and we analyse the ESG credentials of every company we invest in.

As a result of this analysis, we can actively engage with each company to do better, improve their environmental and social impact and increase transparency.

We believe we can make a greater impact through engagement. While excluding certain investments avoids harm, it can ignore the complexity of ESG issues and miss some of the greatest opportunities to progress.

Sustainability is a team sport; we will not reach our sustainability goals unless all companies transition to a more sustainable future.

How do we engage with companies?

We have three layers of engagement with the companies we invest in:

Proactive

As part of our ongoing communication with company management teams and Boards, providing regular feedback on their approach, actions and reporting.

Reactive

Via letters and meetings with Boards and management in response to particular events, for example major breaches of environmental or social requirements.

Governance

As part of our ongoing communication with company management teams and Boards, providing regular feedback on their approach, actions and reporting.

Rolling 12 month count of Milford sustainability engagements

More details about Milford’s proxy voting activity are available here. Note that holdings voted in person at AGMs are currently disclosed as “unvoted”. Please contact us if you require further information.

Active engagements for the 12 months to the end of July 2024

Proxy votes cast for the 12 months to the end of July 2024

Our commitment to sustainable investing

Sustainability Statement 2023

Information detailing our sustainable investing philosophy, core principles and engagement process is outlined in our Sustainability Statement.

Engagement Activities & Outcomes Report 2024

Information detailing our recent engagement activity and outcomes is summarised in our Engagement Activity and Outcomes Report.

PRI Summary Scorecard 2023

The UNPRI undertakes an annual assessment of its signatories to ensure accountability of its signatories, provide a standardised transparency tool for reporting and ultimately to drive positive change in the investment market.

PRI Public Transparency Report 2023

We are thrilled to achieve a score of 4 stars out of 5 across our listed equity and fixed income investing activities for our 2023 assessment.

Should a company be held accountable for its customers’ pollution?

Milford’s Head of Sustainable Investment, Frances Sweetman, delves into the complicated issue of responsibility…

Look out Barbie; UN about to set Oppenheimer on plastics

Sustainable Investment Analyst Grace O’Hanlon takes a deep dive into plastic waste. She looks into the UN’s Global Plastics Treaty with 160 countries, including Australia…

The Principles of Good Stewardship

Frances Sweetman, Head of Sustainable Investment explains why Milford has a dedicated team undertaking detailed sustainability research…

What are you wearing? Undressing Modern Slavery risk in supply chains

Grace O’Hanlon, Sustainable Investment Analyst, discusses the high risk of modern slavery in global supply chains…

Our public commitment to

sustainable investment

UNPRI

Milford made a public commitment to explicitly and consistently incorporate environmental, social and governance factors into our investment decision making by becoming a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI). Full details are available in Milford’s UNPRI Transparency Report.

Responsible Investment Association Australasia Certified

The Milford Kiwisaver Active Growth Fund has been certified by the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA). To achieve certification, RIAA has verified our ESG processes, systems and performance and we have achieved the strict operational and disclosure practices required. We have undertaken this process to demonstrate our commitment to sustainable investment as we strive to play our part in the transition to a more sustainable future.

RIAA Responsible Investment Leader

Milford is very proud to have been named a Responsible Investment Leader by the RIAA in their annual Responsible Investment Benchmark Report Aotearoa New Zealand for both 2022 and 2023. These Leaders are Investment Managers who demonstrate leading practice in their commitment to responsible investment, and their supporting integration and activity. The report noted that Responsible Investment Leaders explicitly and systematically consider ESG factors in the allocation of capital, and are decidedly transparent, reporting publicly not just on their activities to improve environmental and social sustainability, but also the outcomes they achieve.

Climate Action 100+ Participant

Climate Action 100+ is an investor-led initiative to ensure the world’s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters take necessary action on climate change. Made up of 700 global investors who are responsible for more than $68 trillion in assets under management across 33 markets, Climate Action 100+ ensures the businesses they invest into cut emissions to help achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement and accelerate the transition to net-zero emissions by 2050 or sooner. At Milford, we are proud to be part of this initiative and are excited to work alongside likeminded global investors to help accelerate the transition to a more sustainable future.

The New Zealand Stewardship Code

Milford has become a Founding Signatory to the New Zealand Stewardship Code. The Code is an industry-led framework developed to define and promote sustainable investment management practices and our participation signifies our commitment to the code’s nine principles to achieve its three interconnected goals of effective stewardship: to create and preserve long-term value for current and future generations; to ensure the efficient management of capital whilst considering the best interests of clients and beneficiaries, and to contribute towards achieving sustainable outcomes for our environment, society, and economy.

Investment

exclusions

There are companies we simply will not invest in. These include companies that produce a range of weaponry and manufacture tobacco or recreational cannabis.

We will also not invest in companies that fail our own ESG analysis or will not engage when we have identified the need for change.

Across all Milford funds, including our KiwiSaver Funds, we will not directly invest in companies involved in the following activities:

Production or sale of anti-personnel land mines that are not compliant with the Anti-Personnel Mines Prohibition Act 1998
Production, design, testing, assembly, or refurbishment of nuclear explosive devices
Production or development of cluster munitions
Processing of whale meat
Manufacture of tobacco and alternative tobacco products
Manufacture of recreational cannabis products
Companies involved in the manufacture of civilian automatic and semi-automatic firearms, magazines or parts

Milford can use indirect investments for market exposure and hedging purposes. We monitor the extent to which these indirect investments have exposure to companies on the Milford ESG Exclusion List with a view to ensuring the exposure is no more than 1% in aggregate for each Milford fund.