CHAMBERSBURG, PA – If you thought gas was expensive, have you looked at a gallon of milk lately? Dairy costs are on the rise and so are farmer frustrations.

Consumers may not like paying higher prices for milk, but dairy farmers say, don't blame them.
 
Dairy Titus Martin said, "We have very little say in how the milk is priced, but we have a lot to do in how we produce milk, cost wise."
 
In fact, Martin said he and other farmers don't profit from the increased costs though they sure could use them.

"What you may not know is we pay the fuel cost to get things brought to us, feed, fuel, so forth. We pay to have our milk hauled away. With that said, as they put fuel surcharges on, we pay both those, plus the increase fuel of our own. We are paying fuel three ways on the increase of fuel," Martin said.

Most people have noticed the nationwide rise in gas prices, but the increased cost of milk is not far behind.

"The infrastructure of starting a dairy has really gone up. The investment in dairy farming is immense, which is why you'll see, in the Farm Bill, dairy programs to support dairy because once we go out, we're probably not coming back," Martin said.

And Martin said he has no plans to "go out," but he does worry about the future of farming.

"We have seen farms in my generation go very large, and that makes it even more difficult for the next generation. So, my concern is what is it going to look like for the next generation. There are a lot of young farmers out there that are farming, but are they buying into it to keep it going?," Martin said.

Titus Martin said the prices of cows and tractors have also increased since he first began farming.