To Whom It May Concern,

 

A social, economic and environmental sustainability analysis of regionally grown fresh fruit and vegetables in South West Western Australia and Tasmania.

Information Letter

 

Edith Cowan University (ECU)’s School of Medical and Health Sciences are conducting research in collaboration with the University of Tasmania’s Centre for Rural Health, in South West WA (SWWA) and Tasmania. The project’s aim is to understand how COVID-19 has impacted food availability and access in SWWA and Tasmania. ECU has provided funding for the South West WA project.

 

This project’s research questions include:

  1. How do food supply chains contribute to social, economic and environmental sustainability in SWWA and Tasmania?
  2. How has COVID-19 impacted food supply chains in SWWA/Tasmania?
  3. What are the barriers/enablers for relying on short food supply chains in SWWA/Tasmania, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic?
  4. What vision do food system stakeholders have for a post-COVID-19 food supply and what recommendations do they have to achieve this vision?
  5. How has COVID-19 impacted food security among SWWA and TAS households?
 
You are being invited to participate in this project, as a consumer who lives in SWWA.

 

What are the anticipated project outcomes?

The results from this research will inform the development of recommended actions to ensure food availability and access is improved during future crises. The recommendations are envisaged to inform an implementation grant to progress in the region.

 

What would participation in the project involve?

We would like to invite you to participate in an online survey, which is anticipated to take up to 20 minutes to complete.

 

To what extent is participation voluntary, and what are the implications of withdrawing that participation?

  • Participation in this research project is entirely voluntary and you are able to withdraw your consent at any time, up until data analysis. This is because re-analysing data that has already been collected is not feasible. There will be no consequences relating to any decision to withdraw your participation.
  • Should you decide not to participate in this research, your decision will have no impact on your relationship with the project team or ECU/UTAS.

 

What are the benefits of this research?

The benefits of this research to you as a participant will be increased understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on SWWA food availability and access. We also anticipate an increased understanding among people working in our food supply, regarding the barriers/enablers associated with using more direct methods of getting food from farmers to consumers (short food supply chains) in SWWA/Tasmania. It will also generate recommendations for overcoming/enhancing these. Local communities also stand to benefit, from increased availability of and access to regionally grown produce.

 

What are the risks involved with this research?

This research may cause minor inconvenience to you in regards to requiring your time to complete the survey. We will endeavour to not take any more of your time than is required to answer the required questions.

 

What will happen to the information collected, and is privacy and confidentiality assured?

  • The information you provide about your insights into food availability and access will be included in analyses.
  • Results will be used for publications including conference presentations, journal articles, and infographics, all of which may be placed on a related website for rural and remote WA, called Food Community. No information that identifies individual participants will be shared in these results.
  • Throughout the duration of the project, digital data will be stored securely on ECU’s secure server.
  • The results from this project may be used in further research, for example, a statewide comparison of findings across other WA regions, or nationally. Therefore, we would like to utilise the information you provide in this future research.
  • At the completion of the project, data will be transferred to Edith Cowan University’s Records and Archives Management Services (RAMS) for the required retention time, which is seven years.
  • After the minimum retention period has been reached, digital data will be destroyed via digital file shredding and paper copies of data will be destroyed by shredding.

 

Has this research been approved?

The project has received Human Research Ethics Approval from ECU. 

 

Who do I contact if I wish to discuss the project further?

If you would like to discuss any aspect of this study with a member of the research team, please contact the Chief Investigator on the details below:

 

ECU Chief Investigator:

Dr Stephanie Godrich, from the School of Medical and Health Sciences at ECU, is the Chief Investigator of this project and will be overseeing the research. Should you wish to discuss this project with Stephanie, please email s.godrich@ecu.edu.au.

 

If you have any concerns or complaints about the research project and wish to talk to an independent person, you may contact:
Research Ethics Officer
Edith Cowan University 270 Joondalup Drive JOONDALUP WA 6027
Phone: (08) 6304 2170
Email: research.ethics@ecu.edu.au 

 

UTAS Lead Investigator:
Dr Katherine Kent from the Centre for Rural Health at UTAS is the Lead Investigator of this project in Tasmania and will be overseeing the research. Should you wish to discuss this project with Katherine, please email katherine.kent@utas.edu.au. 

 

If you have concerns or complaints about the conduct of this study, you can contact the Executive Officer of the HREC (Tasmania) Network on (03) 6226 2975 or email ss.ethics@utas.edu.au The Executive Officer is the person nominated to receive complaints from research participants.

 

How do I indicate my willingness to be involved?

If you have had all questions about the project answered to your satisfaction, and are willing to participate please click ‘I consent’ at the bottom of this page to be redirected to the start of the survey.

 

Kind regards,

Dr Stephanie Godrich

Chief Investigator, ‘A social, economic and environmental sustainability analysis of regionally grown fresh fruit and vegetables in South West Western Australia and Tasmania’ study.

Edith Cowan University

School of Medical and Health Sciences

Email: s.godrich@ecu.edu.au

Consumer survey consent form:

 

I consent to participate in the social, economic and environmental sustainability analysis of regionally grown fresh fruit and vegetables in South West Western Australia and Tasmania project, and verify that I:

  • Have been provided with a copy of the Information Letter, explaining the research study
  • Have read and understood the information provided.
  • Have been given the opportunity to ask questions and have had any questions answered to my satisfaction.
  • Am aware that if I have any additional questions, I can contact the research team.
  • Understand that participation in the research project will involve completing an online survey which is anticipated to take up to 20 minutes.
  • Understand that the information provided will be kept confidential, and that the identity of participants will not be disclosed without consent.
  • Understand that the data collected for the purposes of this research project may be used in further approved research projects, provided my name and any other identifying information is removed.
  • Understand that I am free to withdraw from further participation at any time up until data analysis, without explanation or penalty
  • Freely agree to participate in the project.

 

Click ‘I consent’ to be redirected to question 1.