A growing urban population in South Africa, as more people flock towns to find work and better education, is likely to keep the fast food businesses open despite a slowdown in the country’s economy.

Fast food companies such as US giant Starbucks, which set up its first outlet in sub-Saharan Africa in Johannesburg a fortnight ago, are expected to continue doing well and find a ready market in busy city dwellers who might not have time to whip up a meal at home.

Despite an economic slowdown in South Africa, scores of Johannesburg’s caffeine crowd thronged the newly opened Starbucks, a sign of the country’s craving for international brands.

“I would prefer cooking and all than, but the think is we don’t have much time as students” Lloyd a resident of Johannesburg told CCTV Africa.

There are concerns over the health implication of this trend on the country.

Health expert warn that South Africans are more than ever likely to suffer from junk food related diseases such as heart attacks and diabetes due to the increase in  the number of fast food outlets in the country.

“Everybody should be eating healthy … to prevent chronic diseases from occurring,” Louise Pywell, a nurse with Diabetes South Africa, told CCTV Africa.