In Timau, the farms that feed Kenyan families may also be harming them, and workers like Reuben Muriki want answers.
Out in central Kenya, the horticultural town of Timau is facing a hard question: has the industry that powers its economy been quietly damaging the people who keep it running? Many locals now believe it has.
For years, Timau's farms have been an economic lifeline, putting wages in the pockets of local families and keeping the town moving. But behind the success story, workers are describing a pattern of serious illness that they link to their jobs.
Reuben Muriki's story shows how it can unfold. Several years ago he fainted while doing a routine chore in the compound of his home near Timau. It was the first sign of a long decline. His joints swelled, his skin changed colour, and breathing became a struggle. He was in and out of hospital, and doctors treated him for suspected tuberculosis, but the treatment did not help.
Muriki eventually had to give up his work as a pesticide sprayer on a flower farm, the very job that had supported him. His case now sits at the center of a wider debate over whether chemical exposure is behind the sickness spreading through the community.
For Timau, the stakes go beyond one man's health. The town depends on this industry, and the workers who make it profitable are asking whether it is safe. Their search for answers puts worker protection in Kenya's horticulture sector under the spotlight.
