A section of Shabab Estate residents in Nakuru West have called on the county's ministry of health to launch a crackdown on butcheries not adhering to hygiene standards.
Speaking on Friday to this writer, the residents expressed fear of outbreak of diseases, noting that most butchers had failed to observe hygienic practices while handling meat.
They also said that most of the slaughterhouses were not only set up on unhygienic surroundings, but were also a haven for flies, which they claimed could easily transmit infections.
Joyce Mwangi, a resident, claimed that three days ago her family members had to rush to the hospital due to stomach pains after eating meat she purchased from one of the butcheries in the estate.
"Not even a week has passed since I purchased some meat around here. Strangely, everyone in the house started complaining of stomach pains after eating the meat.
The ministry of health should step in immediately and carry out an extensive crackdown on these butcheries and close down non-compliant ones," she said.
Eric Ongeri, a taxi operator in the estate, also noted that some butcheries were set up next to broken sewer lines, a situation he said was compromising the safety of meat sold in such places.
"I am not surprised that residents are complaining of health complications because some of the butcheries we have around are adjacently broken sewage pipes," he said.
However, Paul Githu, a butcher owner dismissed the residents' claims, noting that the situation was not as bad as they painted it.
He added that cases of stomach complications were isolated.
"The situation is not that serious as they would want us to believe. Maybe the infections they are talking about are self-inflicted because they are not clean enough," he said.