AMIST Super, the superannuation fund for employees of the meat industry, has rebranded to reach a broader membership base.
From 9 October, the fund will be known as Australian Food Super and be open to any member regardless of their employment.
Chief executive, Murray Rutherford, said: “We’ve become the leading super fund in the meat industry because we have worked hard to understand our members and we’ve learnt a lot about the challenges they face.
“Our work isn’t done, we believe there are more people in Australia that we can help. People in similar walks of life, with similar challenges. It’s time, therefore, to expand our focus to help people working in other food industries – in the same way we have done for the meat industry.
“As Australian Food Super, we will continue to support our members from the day they join, through to entire working life and into retirement with competitive products and solid investment returns.”
The fund has been around for 35 years and has around 60,000 members.
For the 2022–23 financial year, its MySuper Balanced option returned 11.3 per cent.
But its Shares Option (formerly High Growth) failed to meet the 2023 APRA annual performance test.
Earlier this year, AMG Super rebranded as Acclaim Wealth; its MySuper investment option had failed the performance test in 2023, 2022, and 2021. In 2023, it was the only one of 64 MySuper products to fail the test.
The two funds have announced the signing of a non-binding MOU to explore a potential merger.
The board must shift its focus from managing inflation to stimulating the economy with the trimmed mean inflation figure edging closer to the 2.5 per cent target, economists have said.
ASIC chair Joe Longo says superannuation trustees must do more to protect members from misconduct and high-risk schemes.
Super fund mergers are rising, but poor planning during successor fund transfers has left members and employers exposed to serious risks.