The first thing that comes to many peoples’ minds when it comes to fairs is the food. Especially fried food, which seems to be the staple at most fairs. You can find almost anything your heart desires ”” deep fried.

The problem, however, is that the fair lacks food for those who want healthy options. A lot of people in today’s society are becoming more health conscious and trying to eat as healthy as possible. For those looking for a healthy meal or snack, finding that something can be very difficult. You almost have to search to find the healthy options.

The list of unhealthy foods at the fair this year goes on for miles, literally, and includes bacon-wrapped hot dogs, fried twinkies, funnel cakes, 2-pound burgers, pizza, fried chicken and a plethora of other unhealthy things. Even the vegetables are fried. The fair even has some unusual fried items such as fried Kool-Aid and fried frog legs.

The significantly smaller list of healthy food includes fruit cups, chicken kabobs, rotisserie chicken, some sandwiches, gelato and Greek salads. The amount of unhealthy food it seems is almost triple the list of healthy choices.

It’s understood that many people that go to the fair go for the fried food and to have fun trying the many different foods it has to offer. However, it should also be taken into account that some people who go there do want healthy options. Many people that go to the fair go with their families and friends to have fun and socialize.

People who go to the fair with family and friends and want to eat healthy should be given more options than what the fair currently offers. Of the 72 food stands at the fair, only 13 of them have healthy options. That’s a substantially low amount that comes out to about 18 percent. Also, it seemed that of the 13 stands that offered healthy choices, about half of them really only offered snacks, which makes finding a healthy meal even more difficult.

The other problem that is encountered is the price of food. Food prices are absolutely outrageous at the fair. Even a smaller meal tends to cost at least $8. Walking around, I noticed that the average price for food seemed to be around $10 to $12. The highest price I noticed was $18 and that was for a 2-pound cheeseburger. Just to give an example, if you’re looking to feed a family of six and each meal costs $8 (and that’s assuming you’re going on the cheap side), that’s going to cost $48.

Forty-eight dollars may not sound like a lot to some people, but for some in Fresno County, where the unemployment rate is almost double the national unemployment rate, it can be a substantial amount of money. It almost makes the fair unaffordable to some families.

The point of going to a fair for the most part is to have fun. The fair encourages everybody to attend. Right now, however, it seems as though the fair is only catering to the select few. The fair is for the community, but right now, between its food choices and prices, it’s just not cutting it.