Table 2 Focus group sub-categories for dietary behaviours

Food and drink purchasing

It's that time of the month where you cannot afford it [healthy food]. But we will get paid today, and two days after, there is nothing. (Participant ID: 1:105)

No I am not using it [the canteen], I don't have the money to pay for that food. (Participant ID: 1:101)

You can't afford to buy [healthy food]. It's because of the salary. Yes. I don't have the money. And we are tired. (Participant ID: 1:114)

I can't afford to buy myself an apple or maybe 100% juice. (Participant ID: 1:111)

What people eat

Every time in the morning, each one is having a fatcake [“magwinya”, a popular energy-dense, doughnut-type South African street food] (Participant ID: 3:98)

It is not the junk food so much actually. It's vegetable foods. (Participant ID: 3:41)

Reasons for obesity

And if you come in check the women in packing, the majority of the women it's, they are overweight because it's from the canteen eating, and coming back to the line you know and working. (Participant ID: 1:57)

It’s food because all this junk that we eat because remember, we absorb more fats, and we do not burn them. Remember, if you stop smoking, it is good, but if keep on eating junk and you stop smoking, you see now you are inviting something else. (Participant ID: 2:59)

Cigarette smoking

I feel, not exactly that I feel my chest, I feel like there is something that says no this thing is bad for my health. You understand. (Participant ID: 4:66)

I used to be a smoker. I used to gym now I can’t. (Participant ID: 2:66)