Wait, The Iowa State Fair Butter Cow ISN’T Made from 100% Butter?

When you visit the state of Iowa, there are two must-visit places on your itinerary. You need to place catch at The Field of Dreams, and you need to make a visit to the Iowa State Fair. One of the most endearing attractions at the Iowa State Fair is the annual butter cow. Nothing says welcome to the Midwest like a statue of a farm animal made entirely of butter. Or so I thought! What if I told you that the butter cow isn't made from 100% butter?

Call me naive. Call me a sucker. But for my entire life which has been lived in the state of Iowa, I always just assumed that the Iowa State Fair butter cow was made entirely of butter. It turns out I've been living a lie. Business Insider reports that the answer has been hiding in plain sight on the official website of the Iowa State Fair! For those of you who don't want your dreams shattered, read no further. The fair's website states that "The butter cow starts with wood, metal, wire, and steel mesh frame and about 600 lbs of low moisture, pure cream Iowa butter." What?

The website goes on to note that once the frame is inside the 40-degree cooler the layers of butter are added. There you have it. The secret behind the butter cow. I was 48 years old when I found out the Iowa State Fair butter cow isn't made of all butter. While the truth was easy to find, it isn't like folks with the Iowa State Fair don't play up the allure and legend of the butter cow. Would Iowans flock to it like a pilgrimage if they knew it was just butter-covered wire?

Take a poll of your friends and co-workers. How many of them thought the butter cow was 100% butter? Let them down easy. News like this will make your stomach churn.

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