(This story originally appeared in on Aug 27, 2014)

NEW DELHI: Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Tuesday asked PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi to bring down sugar content in its products, hours before Nooyi had a one-on-one meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi .

Nooyi apprised Modi about PepsiCo's investments and other initiatives including social programmes in the country, a person familiar with the development said. "It was a courtesy call without any agenda," the person said. PepsiCo had last year announced plans to invest Rs33,000 crore in India by 2020.

According to a statement from the food processing ministry, Badal asked Nooyi to bring down the sugar content in PepsiCo soft drinks. The maker of Pepsi cola and Mountain Dew citrus-flavoured drink declined to comment on reducing sugar content in its soft drinks. A person familiar with the company said internationally PepsiCo is working on reducing sodium and sugar levels in its products as part of a stated global goal.

In several developed markets, it has already started using Stevia — a zero-calorie sweetener that comes from a plant — as a substitute for sugar. The natural sweetener from a traditional medicinal plant grown in Paraguay and Brazil has not yet been brought to India because it has not got the nod from food regulatory authorities in the country. Both PepsiCo and Coca-Cola are likely to start using Stevia in India as soon as it is allowed in the country, the person said.

According to the food processing ministry statement, Badal also stressed on the potential for providing healthy meals to children in her meeting with Nooyi and the PepsiCo boss said her company would strive to provide healthy and nutritious products for the Indian market.