Everybody’s probably experienced at the checkout or at least heard by now that milk prices are going up. In fact, the price of a gallon of the white stuff has just about equaled the cost of gasoline.

But that’s no reason to get angry at daily farmers and start hollerin’ at them like you do at the oil companies. You won’t see dairymen raking in record billion-dollar profits.

Dairy farmers in New York state got an average milk-price increase of about 65 percent last month compared to June 2006. The $20.10 per hundredweight of milk sold during June was $1.60 more than May, or about 8 percent.

But the rising price has a little ways to go before it meets the cost of production, and dairy farmers are still trying to get out of the hole that years of low prices and skyrocketing expenses have put them in.

Local dairy farmer Alex Ives says, "most businesses would have folded up and gone away. But farmers keep going. It’s a lifestyle more than anything."

As you might expect, higher prices for milk are going to spill over into other foods that contain dairy products. But we need to be patient and understanding and not overreact by cutting back on those products.

Let’s give farmers a chance to catch up.

Take time to enjoy the fairs

You know when the Afton Fair begins that it’s the beginning of fair season. We applaud with anticipation the exhibits of animals, culinary offerings, farm displays, shows and special events being offered this week and at county fairs later this summer.

Fairs provide an important venue to learn about farm life. And for some area farmers, the county fair is a time to show off a year’s work, meet with other farmers and learn about technological advances in equipment.

Hundreds of children will present animals they have groomed, fed and trained. The 4-H shows will feature fowl, rabbits, cows, pigs, horses and goats.

The Afton Fair continues through the weekend, but that’s just the beginning. Next on tap is the Otsego County Fair in Morris from July 31 to Aug. 5. The following week there are the Chenango County Fair in Norwich and the Cobleskill Sunshine Fair.

The "six best days of summer" will continue in Walton with the Delaware County Fair from Aug. 14-19.

Fairs are great for nonfarmers and city folk, too, by offering an opportunity to see the source of milk, eggs and other foods that appear in carefully wrapped packages in grocery stores.

And, of course, a day at fair wouldn’t be complete without fair food "" hamburgers, hot dogs, cotton candy, doughy and frozen treats and apples coated in caramel. The fairs also offer tractor-pulls, demolition derbies, performers and midway rides.

Fairs wouldn’t happen without countless hours spent by organizers, volunteers and presenters, and we applaud the efforts by all involved.

Fairs are a good chance to spend time with family and friends. Go and have some fun this summer.