Make a personal contribution by 5pm on the 24th of June 2026 to ensure it is received in your account this financial year. This is important if you are eligible to claim the government co-contribution or a tax deduction for personal contributions.
Investment options
Cruelty Free Super has three investment options;
- Cruelty Free Australian Shares
- Cruelty Free International Shares
- Cash
Our Cruelty Free ethical investment screens only apply to the Cruelty Free Australian Shares and Cruelty Free International Shares options. The Cash option does not have any ethical investment screening applied, as it is money held in a bank account.
For more information on the Cruelty Free investment process please refer to our Reference Guide.
Investment Selection
You can choose which investment options to invest in to suit your personal financial objectives, situation and needs, however you cannot choose to invest more than 90% of your account balance in any one option.
Cruelty Free Australian Shares
Recommended Minimum investment timeframe | 10 years |
Investment return objective | To outperform the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index over rolling 10-year periods (after fees and taxes). |
Investment strategy | The option aims to be fully invested in a diverse mix of Australian listed companies that make up the index (S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index) subject to them meeting the minimum responsible investment criteria of the fund. |
Risk Level* | Risk Band 6: High. It is estimated the investment option will have between 4 to less than 6 negative annual returns over any 20-year period. |
Suitability | This option is designed for members who wish to invest in Australian shares which have been screened taking into account labour standards and environmental, social and ethical considerations, and who are comfortable with the value of their investments fluctuating over time. |
Asset type | This is a growth-oriented asset |
Cruelty Free Super’s ethical screening | Yes |
Cruelty Free International Shares
Recommended Minimum investment timeframe | 10 years |
Investment return objective | To outperform the MSCI World EX Australia Index (Net Dividends Reinvested) in AUD over rolling 10-year periods (after fees and taxes). |
Investment strategy | The option aims to be fully invested in a diverse mix of international listed companies that make up the index (MSCI World EX Australia Net Dividends Reinvest in AUD) subject to them meeting the minimum responsible investment criteria of the fund. |
Risk Level* | Risk Band 6: High. It is estimated the investment option will have between 4 to less than 6 negative annual returns over any 20-year period. |
Suitability | This option is designed for members who wish to invest in international shares which have been screened taking into account labour standards and environmental, social and ethical considerations, and who are comfortable with the value of their investments fluctuating over time. |
Asset type | This is a growth-orientated asset |
Cruelty Free Super’s ethical screening | Yes |
Cash
Recommended Minimum investment timeframe | 2 years |
Investment return objective | To outperform the RBA Cash Rate over rolling 2-year periods (after fees and taxes). |
Investment strategy | The option is to be fully invested in cash at a bank account. |
Risk Level* | Risk Band 1: Very low. It is estimated the investment option will have less than 0.5 negative annual returns over any 20-year period. |
Suitability | This option is designed for members who wish to invest in a cash investment option and who are less comfortable with the value of their investments fluctuating over time. The assets held by this investment option consist of cash held in a bank account. Labour standards and environmental, social and ethical considerations are not taken into account for this investment option. |
Asset type | This is a defensive-oriented asset |
Cruelty Free Super’s ethical screening | No. |
* The Standard Risk Measure (SRM) allows you to compare investment options that are expected to deliver a similar number of negative annual returns over any 20-year period.
Ethical Screens provides more information about the extent to which labour standards and environmental, social and ethical considerations are taken into consideration in the Cruelty Free Australian Shares and Cruelty Free International Shares investment options.
Variation from your allocation
If you’re invested in more than one investment option, the percentage of your account balance in each option will change over time with market movements. This could also mean that the risk profile of your account changes.
If this occurs, the Trustee will not change the percentage of your balance invested in your chosen investment options - including if your balance increases above 90% in a single investment option. As a result, you may want to rebalance your account periodically to bring the percentage invested in each investment option back in line with your original selection.
Once you have selected an investment strategy, you can change it at any time. When you do, your current balance and future contributions will be switched to match your new investment choice.
There is no charge for switching investment options, however a buy/sell price differential may apply. A switch will be effected as soon as reasonably practicable upon receipt of a valid instruction.
Diversification
Diversification means spreading investments across different asset classes, assets within an asset class, investment managers and investment strategies.
The aim is to reduce the overall portfolio volatility. A well-diversified portfolio smooths out the returns from the component investments.
A diversified investment portfolio typically falls into one of three categories:
- 1Growth orientatedThis portfolio mainly invests in assets aiming to provide a higher return but with higher volatility. Growth orientated investment options offered by Cruelty Free Super include Cruelty Free Australian Shares and Cruelty Free International Shares.
- 2A balance of growth and defensiveThis portfolio invests in a mix of major asset classes aiming to deliver a moderate return with moderate volatility.
- 3Defensively orientatedThis portfolio mainly invests in assets aiming to provide a modest return with lower volatility. Cruelty Free Super has one defensive option, Cash.
Cruelty Free Super offers two growth oriented investment options, Cruelty Free Australian Shares and Cruelty Free International Shares, which have been constructed with regard to labour standards and environmental, social and ethical considerations.
Each of the Cruelty Free Australian Shares and Cruelty Free International Shares investment options offer a degree of diversification within the primary growth asset class invested in by the option, as the option is invested in a number of different companies. However, neither of these two investment options are diversified across asset classes, investment managers or investment strategies. In addition, the Cruelty Free Australian Shares and Cruelty Free International Shares investment options could potentially have a small allocation to Cash. See the Reference Guide for more information.
The Cash option is not ethically screened. Additionally, because it is invested entirely in a bank account, it is not considered a diversified investment option.
Time horizon and effect on volatility
Keep in mind your expected investment time horizon and the volatility of the investment options chosen. Are you young and will be invested in super for the next 40 years? Are your older and will soon be able to retire and access your super?
In the tables above there are recommended time horizons for each investment option. There are also estimates for the number of negative returns years in any 20 year period.
Generally, the longer the investment holding period, the less the volatility expected, and conversely, the shorter the investment holding period, the higher the volatility expected.
For more information on the Cruelty Free investment process please refer to our Reference Guide.
Understanding your investment mix – the risk & return trade-offs
When building your investment allocation from the options available in Cruelty Free Super, your selections will determine the overall balance between Growth assets (Australian and International Shares) and Defensive assets (Cash). Understanding how these components interact can help you make an informed decision.
1. Maximising growth exposure (high share allocations)
- ●The core strategy: Allocating a higher percentage of your balance to Cruelty Free Australian Shares and Cruelty Free International Shares.
- ●The trade-off: This approach maximises your long-term compound growth potential, making it historically more suitable if you have a longer investment timeframe (10+ years). However, it exposes your balance to higher short-term market volatility and a greater expected frequency of negative return years.
- ●Note: you cannot allocate more than 90% of your total account balance to any single investment option.
2. Incorporating defensive stability (adding cash)
- ●The core strategy: Introducing a portion of Cash alongside your share choices.
- ●The trade-off: Cash acts as a stabilising anchor. Increasing your cash allocation generally lowers the overall volatility of your portfolio and reduces the likelihood of short-term negative returns. The trade-off is that Cash lowers the overall long-term annualised return expectation.
- ●Note: The Cash option is not ethically screened. You cannot allocate more than 90% of your total account balance to any single investment option. Allocating 50% or more of your total balance to Cash will trigger a warning message asking you to confirm that this defensive strategy aligns with your retirement goals.
Understanding investment allocations
Important: Examples using Non-Ethically Screened Market Data
The investment allocation scenarios shown below are purely theoretical. They are based on standard, non-ethically screened broad market investment options and presented for illustrative purposes only.
Because Cruelty Free Super applies ethical screens to its investment options (excluding the cash option), a large portion of the standard investment universe is excluded from its investment options. In contrast, the examples below represent non-ethically screened broad market investment options. Consequently, the expected returns and risk metrics for the Cruelty Free Super Fund's screened options may vary from these broad market examples and may be lower.
The table below provides analysis of the expected investment outcomes for various blends of four broad market investment allocation scenarios.
The analysis focusses on a range of possible investment allocations. The range is not designed to be comprehensive and is provided as a guide to the potential impact of different investment allocations on the following key metrics:
- ●Expected Return - Allocating a higher percentage of your balance to growth assets aims to maximise your long-term expected return. On the other hand, incorporating a higher proportion of defensively oriented assets (Cash) shifts the portfolio toward a more moderate or modest return expectation.
- ●Expected number of Negative returns over a 20-year period – Including a higher growth allocation exposes your balance to higher short-term market volatility and has a greater expected frequency of negative return years. Introducing defensive stability by adding Cash acts as a stabilising anchor, reducing the likelihood and frequency of short-term negative returns.
- ●Standard Risk Measure (SRM) - This standardised industry label allows you to easily compare investment allocations that are expected to deliver a similar number of negative annual returns over a 20-year span. Maximising growth exposure places a portfolio in a higher risk band (such as Band 6: High), while increasing a defensive cash allocation lowers the overall risk band.
| Investment Allocation Scenario | Expected Return (p.a.) Scenario | Estimated Negative Return Years (in a 20-year period) Scenario | Standard Risk Measure (SRM) Scenario |
|---|---|---|---|
Scenario A
| 7.3% | 5.1 years | Band 6: High |
Scenario B
| 6.7% | 4.9 years | Band 6: High |
Scenario C
| 5.9% | 4.5 years | Band 6: High |
Scenario D
| 5.3% | 4 years | Band 5: Medium to High |