Kingston Township day care offers tykes organic fare

Everything at Once Upon a Time Day Care is all natural and organic – from the food right down to the pest control.

Mia Correa sampled some puffed rice and organic peas at Once Upon a Time Day Care in Kingston Township recently.

S. JOHN WILKIN/THE TIMES LEADER

That’s because the Kingston Township child-care center’s owner steers clear of foods containing chemicals and preservatives.

“I have one little boy that, when his mom takes him to Dunkin’ Donuts, will ask if the doughnuts are organic,” Becky Chlubicki said.

The day care, attached to her Dug Road home, has ordered the natural and organic foods from United Natural Foods for the past year. But her choices don’t mean her young charges can’t enjoy the foods to which youngsters are typically drawn.

She still serves chicken, potatoes and meats but in varieties free of hormones and antibiotics.

“Once I made a decision in January of 2008 that I wanted to introduce the organic and natural foods to my day care, the parents were thrilled,” Chlubicki said.

She just ran into one obstacle: how to afford it.

Most retailers require a minimum order of $100-$150, but by May of 2008, Chlubicki got in touch with UNFI, a national distributor of natural and organic foods, and was able to buy bulk orders from a variety of product lines at better rates.

Her orders usually total “over $1,000 monthly,” she said. “I could not have done this without UNFI.”

A quick scan of UNFI’s catalog shows the company carries a huge variety of items: syrups, marinades and sauces; diapers, baby wipes and napkins; cookies, wafers and tea biscuits; salmon, beans and rice; water, milk and soda; and more.

All items are 100 percent organic, which essentially means they conform to certain production standards that do not involve synthetic chemical additives.

Chlubicki, a vegetarian for 20 years, is a kid-friendly shopper. She buys organic jelly beans from UNFI for a “potty-training treat” to reward children who go to the bathroom on their own or as an incentive for the children to finish more filling snacks, such as pineapple chunks and tortilla chips with peach/mango salsa.

“It’s cold,” 3-year-old Colin McCann said with a smile after sampling a pineapple chunk during an afternoon snack time.

“What do you want more of?” Chlubicki asked. “Everything?”

“Yes, please,” he said.

The tyke even got to sample some organic peas and jelly beans, too.

Sophia Rucco, 4, of Larksville, also enjoyed the chosen snacks.

“Yum, yum, yum: pineapple,” she said as she bit into a chunk.

Earlier in the same day, the children dined on marinated mahi mahi in Italian herb vinaigrette dressing with grilled rye bread and cheese, mixed stir-fry vegetables, bowtie pasta and milk.

Most of the children love the variety of organic and natural foods they get to try there, the owner said.

Jake Gizenski, 4, is among them.

He has several favorites, including the sweet-potato fries, which Chlubicki serves with ketchup, chocolate-chip cookies and jelly beans, all of which are organic.

Chlubicki said despite some news reports that indicate organic food isn’t more nutritious than regular food, the organic and natural items she gets don’t have all the extra chemicals conventional foods do, which is why they’re better to serve than processed food.

Other ways the day care goes green include using eco-friendly hand soaps and hotel-style large washcloths instead of paper towels and encouraging recycling of children’s clothes.