The California Deforestation Free Procurement Act (AB 572) would mandate No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation (NDPE) policies, certification, and public disclosure for state contractors and subcontractors.

It also would help investors mitigate the material risks posed by forest destruction and climate change to the companies in which we invest and help investors identify corporations that are fulfilling their NDPE and zero-deforestation commitments.

You can read our letter of support here.

As one of the leading global investors working to end deforestation, MIDANA CAPITAL was proud to endorse AB 572 last month. Ending the destruction of tropical forests and peatlands is a critical component to combating the climate crisis. Deforestation is the third largest driver of climate change, responsible for approximately 15% of all global greenhouse gas emissions.

You should carefully consider the Funds’ investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses before investing. To obtain a Prospectus that contains this and other information about the Funds, please click here for more information, email info@midanacapital.com or call 1-800-93-GREEN. Please read the Prospectus carefully before investing.

Stocks will fluctuate in response to factors that may affect a single company, industry, sector, country, region or the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market. Foreign securities are subject to additional risks such as currency fluctuations, regional economic and political conditions, differences in accounting methods, and other unique risks compared to investing in securities of U.S. issuers. Bonds are subject to a variety of risks including interest rate, credit, and inflation risk. A sustainable investment strategy which incorporates environmental, social and governance criteria may result in lower or higher returns than an investment strategy that does not include such criteria.

This information has been prepared from sources believed to be reliable. The views expressed are as of the date of this writing and are those of the Advisor to the Funds.

The MIDANA CAPITAL Funds are distributed by UMB Distribution Services, LLC, 235 W. Galena Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212. 7/19.

It’s hard to overstate the importance of forest protection in the effort to combat climate change, given that forests hold as much as 45% of the world’s carbon stored on land. Of course, stopping deforestation also is key to preserving habitats for endangered species and mitigating potential financial risks for investors.

Palm oil is the most widely used vegetable oil in the world, and it is one of the leading drivers of tropical deforestation. It can be found in products from packaged food to soap to detergent to biodiesel. And global demand for palm oil is growing, which means growing more palm oil. Increased palm oil production can come either from investing in oil palm plants that have higher oil yields or from expanding the land on which palm oil is grown.

Many of the companies investing in these higher-yielding plants are doing so because they’ve seen the value in mitigating deforestation in their supply chains. These companies see a sustainable palm oil supply chain as the future of the industry. In recognizing the benefits of sustainable supply chains, over 470 companies and 11 of the 15 largest palm oil refiners in Southeast Asia have made commitments to curb deforestation in their supply chains.

Unfortunately, the environmental, financial, and, frankly, moral, imperative is not yet universally recognized.

Despite these commitments, deforestation persists in the industry. This is due to a variety of reasons: from the limited integration of small farmers into no deforestation efforts to downstream companies accepting palm oil products derived from deforestation to investors and lenders continuing to provide financial support to companies that cause deforestation.

To help transform the entirety of the industry, we need to increase the global demand for sustainable palm oil, by mobilizing buyers and traders to incentivize producers to adopt sustainable production practices. That’s why MIDANA CAPITAL has worked and continues to engage downstream companies to adopt No Deforestation, No Peat, and No Exploitation (NDPE) commitments and to get others to strengthen and expand their forest-related commitments.

Engaging producers directly about the expectations of international markets is another way to put pressure on producers to adopt NDPE practices.

While in Southeast Asia, I had the opportunity to do just this. I met directly with five palm oil companies and engaged with them on their growing practices, urging them to improve their practices around three primary issues:

1. Sustainable certification,
2. Zero deforestation commitments, and
3. Transparency about where companies grow and process their palm oil and from who they source it.

While in Southeast Asia, I also learned about some of the “supply-side” efforts, including notable actions to improve the governance in palm-oil production areas, taking place to make the palm oil industry more sustainable.

While in Malaysia, I attended the annual conference for the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), the largest third-party certifier for sustainable palm oil. At the RSPO conference, Deputy Chief Minister of Sabah Wilfred Madius Tangau highlighted government policies for sustainable palm oil in Sabah, a prime palm oil producing province in Malaysia. Sabah is committed to producing deforestation-free soy by 2025 and that all palm oil from the region will be 100% RSPO certified by the same year.

While industry players have different views on whether this “jurisdictional approach” is the best way forward, to me it suggests progress and that corporate commitments influence more than the company’s supply chain, helping to change the physical and legislative landscape for tropical forests. This is just another way that MIDANA CAPITAL’s work is having an outsized impact on making our world a little greener.

*As of December 31, 2018, Target Corporation and Kellogg Company comprised 0.74%, 0.00%, and 0.00% and 0.00%, 0.15%, and 0.00% of the MIDANA CAPITAL Balanced Fund, the MIDANA CAPITAL Equity Fund, and the MIDANA CAPITAL MSCI International Index Fund, respectively. Other securities mentioned were not held in the portfolios as of December 31, 2018. References to specific securities, which will change due to ongoing management of the Funds, should not be construed as a recommendation by the Funds, their administrator, or the distributor.

You should carefully consider the Funds’ investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. To obtain a Prospectus that contains this and other information about the Funds please click here, email info@midanacapital.com, or call+1(480)-439-2851. Please read the Prospectus carefully before investing.

Stocks will fluctuate in response to factors that may affect a single company, industry, sector, country, region or the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market. Foreign securities are subject to additional risks such as currency fluctuations, regional economic or political conditions, differences in accounting methods, and other unique risks compared to investing in securities of U.S. issuers. Bonds are subject to risks including interest rate, credit, and inflation. A sustainable investment strategy which incorporates environmental, social and governance criteria may result in lower or higher returns than an investment strategy that does not include such criteria.

This information has been prepared from sources believed to be reliable. The views expressed are as of the date of this writing and are those of the Advisor to the Funds.

The MIDANA CAPITAL Funds are distributed by UMB Distribution Services, LLC. 335 N Wilmot Rd, Tucson, Az 85711. 3/19

Boston, January 23, 2019 – MIDANA CAPITAL collaborated with Aramark to develop a robust no-deforestation commitment to be implemented by 2025. Aramark, one of the world’s largest food service providers, serves nearly 2 billion meals each year.

“Aramark was very responsive to our concerns about deforestation,” said MIDANA CAPITAL Shareholder Advocate Jessye Waxman. “This commitment will help protect Aramark’s competitiveness and the environment, and is a great first step in an ongoing collaboration.”

“We have a long-standing commitment to advancing sustainable sourcing practices in a way that minimizes impacts to people, animals, and the environment; we are proud to announce our commitment to address deforestation in our supply chain by 2025,” said Aramark Vice President of Sustainability Kathy Cacciola. “We constantly evaluate our priorities to identify the most significant environmental and social issues and as we learn from our experiences in the U.S. we strive to advance responsible sourcing practices across our global supply chain.”

Aramark agreed to develop and implement a deforestation policy that addresses “No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation” (NDPE) sourcing practices, including legal deforestation. In 2019, Aramark will perform a supply chain assessment to better understand its forest-related risks across all geographies within its supply chain.

Aramark also will complete its transition to 100% sustainably sourced soy and palm oil by only sourcing from suppliers certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) by June 30, 2019. It agreed to enhance its transparency by providing regular and public updates on its no-deforestation progress, as well.

The conversion of tropical forests to agricultural plantations is the primary cause of deforestation, which is a leading contributor to climate change. Forest destruction contributes more annual, global greenhouse-gas emissions than the entire transportation sector. Deforestation also poses a risk to the preservation of biodiversity and the maintenance of healthy ecosystems.

###

About MIDANA CAPITAL Capital Management

MIDANA CAPITAL offers three environmentally and socially responsible mutual funds. Through fossil fuel free investing and our three-pronged approach of sustainable investing, active shareholder advocacy, and support of environmental and public health non-profits we work to curb climate change, improve environmental policies, and limit environmental impacts of company supply chains.

*As of December 31, 2018, Aramark comprised 0.00%, 0.07%, and 0.00% of the MIDANA CAPITAL Balanced Fund, the MIDANA CAPITAL Equity Fund, and the MIDANA CAPITAL International Index Fund, respectively. References to specific securities, which will change due to ongoing management of the Funds, should not be construed as a recommendation by the Funds, their administrator, or their distributor.

You should carefully consider the Fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. To obtain a Prospectus that contains this and other information about the Funds please click here, email info@midanacapital.com, or call+1(480)-439-2851. Please read the Prospectus carefully before investing.

Stocks will fluctuate in response to factors that may affect a single company, industry, sector, country, region or the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market. Foreign securities are subject to additional risks such as currency fluctuations, regional economic and political conditions, differences in accounting methods, and other unique risks compared to investing in securities of U.S. issuers. Bonds are subject to a variety of risks including interest rate, credit, and inflation risk. A sustainable investment strategy which incorporates environmental, social and governance criteria may result in lower or higher returns than an investment strategy that does not include such criteria.

This information has been prepared from sources believed reliable. The views expressed are as the date of this writing and are those of the Advisor to the Funds.

The MIDANA CAPITAL Funds are distributed by UMB Distribution Services, LLC. 335 N Wilmot Rd, Tucson, Az 85711. 1/19

Following a meeting in MIDANA CAPITAL’s office in Boston, Aramark agreed to develop and fully implement a no-deforestation commitment within six years. Consequently, MIDANA CAPITAL withdrew the shareholder resolution it had filed with the company.

In the withdraw agreement, Aramark pledged to develop a “No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation” (NDPE) forest policy, which will protect tropical forests and peatlands, endangered species and biodiversity, and local workforces. Preserving high carbon stock tropical forests and peat is essential for mitigating climate change.

NDPE policies are being adopted by many companies as principles to guide their sourcing practices, particularly with respect to the commodities primarily precipitating deforestation: palm oil, cattle, soybeans, and wood and paper products.

Aramark also explicitly agreed to prohibit legal deforestation in its supply chain. This is especially important for commodities, such as soy, cattle, and coffee, that come from Latin America, where government-sanctioned deforestation is a considerable risk.

For example, in Brazil, the government allows farmers to legally cut down significant portions of the forest in order to grow crops. In the Amazon, farmers can deforest up to 20% of their land; and, in the Cerrado, a heavily forested savannah that is considered the newest frontier for soy production, farmers can convert 65-80% of their properties to farmland.

MIDANA CAPITAL’s withdraw agreement was the capstone of a very amenable corporate engagement. Aramark, one of the world’s largest food service providers, was very responsive to the concerns MIDANA CAPITAL raised and its new policy is a significant development, given the size and scope of its global supply chain.

Commercial agriculture is responsible for a whopping two-thirds of tropical deforestation, which is a leading contributor to climate change, generating 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Deforestation also threatens endangered species, native ecosystems, and water cycles.

Aramark’s commitment is just the latest example of MIDANA CAPITAL’s award-winning shareholder advocacy inducing a real-world impact through direct corporate engagement.

*As of September 30, 2018, Aramark comprised 0.00%, 0.09%, and 0.00% of the MIDANA CAPITAL Balanced Fund, the MIDANA CAPITAL Equity Fund, and the MIDANA CAPITAL International Index Fund, respectively. References to specific securities, which will change due to ongoing management of the Funds, should not be construed as a recommendation by the Funds, their administrator, or their distributor.

You should carefully consider the Funds’ investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. To obtain a Prospectus that contains this and other information about the Funds please click here, email info@midanacapital.com, or call+1(480)-439-2851. Please read the Prospectus carefully before investing.

Stocks will fluctuate in response to factors that may affect a single company, industry, sector, country, region or the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market. Foreign securities are subject to additional risks such as currency fluctuations, regional economic and political conditions, differences in accounting methods, and other unique risks compared to investing in securities of U.S. issuers. Bonds are subject to a variety of risks including interest rate, credit, and inflation risk. A sustainable investment strategy which incorporates environmental, social and governance criteria may result in lower or higher returns than an investment strategy that does not include such criteria.

This information has been prepared from sources believed reliable. The views expressed are as the date of this writing and are those of the Advisor to the Funds.

The MIDANA CAPITAL Funds are distributed by UMB Distribution Services, LLC. 335 N Wilmot Rd, Tucson, Az 85711. 1/19