{"id":887,"date":"2018-10-26T14:53:02","date_gmt":"2018-10-26T12:53:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/?p=887"},"modified":"2026-01-21T15:49:59","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T14:49:59","slug":"versus-or-monadic-test-how-to-pick-the-right-method","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/en\/versus-or-monadic-test-how-to-pick-the-right-method\/","title":{"rendered":"Versus or monadic test? How to pick the right method!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\"><div class=\"intro\"><\/span>Versus and monadic tests are the most common methods used to assess pet food palatability. If both techniques measure the quantity of food eaten by pets at mealtime, they deliver different answers about consumption.<span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\"><\/div><\/span><\/p>\n<h1><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\"><div class=\"intro\"><\/span>Which method is the most appropriate to assess pet food performance? Dr Emira Mehinagic helps you make the right choice.<span style=\"font-size: 12pt;\"><\/div><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>What do we refer to with \u00ab versus or monadic tests \u00bb?<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Sensory performance of pet foods is commonly checked through animal observation at meal time. 1, 2 or more products can be offered to the pet simultaneously for this sensory evaluation.<\/p>\n<p>Most frequently used methods are the versus and monadic tests. In both cases, as dogs and cats do not speak, we measure the quantity of food eaten, but each protocol delivers a different answer about consumption.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1277 alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Versus.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"67\" height=\"46\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The <span style=\"color: #e03c00;\"><strong>versus test<\/strong><\/span> involves offering the dog or cat a choice between 2 products in order to analyze the diets\u2019 olfactory attractiveness and the preference expressed by the pet. Criteria evaluated: First choice (first product eaten), Intake ratios and Distribution of consumption.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1275 alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Monadic.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"55\" height=\"38\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The <span style=\"color: #e03c00;\"><strong>monadic test<\/strong><\/span> consists of feeding only one product and analyzing animal acceptance. The main criterion measured is the percentage of the ration eaten.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>What are the advantages\/drawbacks of each method?<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1277 alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Versus.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"67\" height=\"46\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #e03c00;\"><strong>Versus tests<\/strong> <\/span>correspond to a paired comparison, but products are tested simultaneously in similar conditions. Additionally, these tests deliver a higher level of discrimination; consequently they are more adapted to measuring fine differences.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1275 alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Monadic.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"55\" height=\"38\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #e03c00;\"><strong>Monadic tests<\/strong><\/span> assess a pet food\u2019s acceptability level. Testing conditions are closer to the \u201cnatural\u201d in-home feeding experience, but they are less accurate than versus tests.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>In which context would you advise each method?<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1277 alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Versus.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"67\" height=\"46\" \/><\/p>\n<p>We would advise the use of <span style=\"color: #e03c00;\"><strong>versus tests<\/strong><\/span> at various stages of product development: to measure the impact of a low dosage ingredient, the impact of a process change, or the impact of a switch to a new raw material supplier, for instance. These tests are key to assess the impact of one variable only on the pet food palatability and sensory performance.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1275 alignnone\" src=\"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Monadic.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"55\" height=\"38\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The <span style=\"color: #e03c00;\"><strong>monadic test<\/strong><\/span> should be used for final validation of a new or modified formula and for benchmark comparisons, potentially at home.<br \/>\nBoth methods deliver different and complementary information about pet foods\u2019 palatability and performance.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Monadic or versus? 1 or 2 bowls? All people engaged in pet food palatability measurement have already faced these existential questions. Learn how to make an informed choice!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11075,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[85],"tags":[213,143,110,109,214,142],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v15.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Versus or monadic test? How to pick the right method! - Appetizer - Symrise Pet Food<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.appetizerblog.com\/en\/versus-or-monadic-test-how-to-pick-the-right-method\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Versus or monadic test? 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