Equivalence Testing in Agriculture Experiments

Equivalence testing is a relatively new area of research in statistics. It's development has been motivated in large part by the need for statistical methods for determining if generic drugs are bioequivalent to their name brand counterparts. The application of equivalence testing methods to data resulting from experiments and surveys unrelated to drug development, and in particular agriculture-related experiments, is infrequent and possibly non-existent. These methods provide useful alternatives to the analysis methods currently being used. In this paper, an overview of the philosophy of equivalence testing and a review of equivalence testing methods are presented. Additionally, experimental situations for which equivalence testing would be appropriate are discussed. Examples that illustrate the application of the philosphy of equivalence testing to experimental designs commonly used in agriculture research are also presented.