The Iowa Cow War quickly ended when state veterinarians completed testing in the remaining few counties. The balance of power had clearly shifted to favor government responsibility for public health over farmers' rights. As a result, already struggling Iowa farmers faced deeper financial woes and frustration. This fueled the Farmers' Holiday Strike, whereby farmers statewide protested low crop and livestock prices through public demonstrations and refusal to market their products. These protests soon spread nationwide and caused an economic crisis.
"Striking Farmers." (Council Bluffs Library, c. 1932)
"We’ll eat our wheat and ham and eggs, and let them eat their gold."
In 1933, as part of the New Deal, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Agricultural Adjustment Act, which paid farmers to limit their production and adjusted commodity prices upward. Beyond ending the 1930's crisis, this successful farm support system remains the basis of government agricultural policy today.
Legacy: Agricultural Health Policies
The Iowa Cow War ended but its legacy lives on. Bovine TB is now a rare occurrence, due to the USDA's National Tuberculosis Eradication Program, established in 1937, only six years after the Iowa Cow War ended. In 1940, the government asserted further responsibility for public health when it established a new pasteurization program. Today, the government regularly imposes policies on farmers that regulate animal and plant diseases in the interest of food safety, but with financial supports that make up for farmers' lost decision-making rights.
Balancing Rights and Responsiblilities (Mike Naig, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, Personal Interview, April 9, 2025)
(Alamogordo Daily News, June 1, 2024, p. A5)
"I describe myself as a pretty big individual rights guy and not a government intervention guy. But with that being said, when something really affects others, like a public health concern or other people's livelihoods, like their livestock, then we need to have a strong conversation about [responsible] interventions."
-Pat Hoffman, Veterinarian (Personal Interview, April 9, 2025)
