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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nThe Salt on the Road<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\nPrungross did not begin with a business plan. It began with a roadside stop in Pattani.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“It started by accident. I was in Pattani meeting a client when I drove past a roadside stall selling salt. I’d heard bits and pieces about Pattani sea salt before, so I stopped, bought some and gave it a try.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
He later shared the salt on Instagram Stories. A friend who ran a gelato shop saw the post and asked whether he could bring some over to test in a caramel gelato. The request became the unlikely starting point for Prungross.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Food was never the original destination. Curiosity was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the time, Kokkaew was still working at Procter & Gamble (P&G), managing Thailand\u2019s lower southern region. Years spent in Hat Yai built close ties to the area and a growing interest in products that rarely received attention beyond the South.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“I’ve always been drawn to research-driven projects.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
As interest around the salt grew, a new question emerged: how could a small local product reach professional kitchens? He reached out directly to the local co-operative and placed an order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“I still remember the first order. It was 100 kilogrammes. The chairman of the farmers’ co-operative delivered it himself. He asked what I planned to do with it and I told him we wanted to test it in a caramel sauce for a gelato shop. He said, ‘Alright, tell me more.'”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
That conversation led to Pattani, where the reality of the industry became clearer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“Production here is tiny. Most people aren’t doing it as a commercial business. They do it because it’s part of their way of life.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
What he found was a tradition that had lasted for more than 400 years despite limited demand and output. Pattani would never compete on volume.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“We went into it on faith. We knew the supply would always be limited. There was no economy of scale. If we couldn’t compete on quantity, then we had to make it as premium as possible.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
That belief shaped everything that came next. Investment went into research, laboratory testing and collaboration with researchers at Prince of Songkla University. His background working in fast-paced consumer goods (FMCG) companies helped build structure around the process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“Most of Thailand’s salt comes from Samut Songkhram, Phetchaburi and Samut Sakhon. Together they account for almost all national production. Pattani produces around one per cent. In a good year, we’re talking hundreds of tonnes. Phetchaburi alone produces hundreds of thousands. At that point, I simply felt I wanted to help. That was the whole reason.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
The early days looked less like a business and more like experimentation. Equipment was bought with little certainty that any of it would work. A failed attempt to wash salt led him into books, research and traditional salt-making methods from Europe and beyond. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
“It started by accident. I was in Pattani meeting a client when I drove past a roadside stall selling salt. I’d heard bits and pieces about Pattani sea salt before, so I stopped, bought some and gave it a try.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
He later shared the salt on Instagram Stories. A friend who ran a gelato shop saw the post and asked whether he could bring some over to test in a caramel gelato. The request became the unlikely starting point for Prungross.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Food was never the original destination. Curiosity was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the time, Kokkaew was still working at Procter & Gamble (P&G), managing Thailand\u2019s lower southern region. Years spent in Hat Yai built close ties to the area and a growing interest in products that rarely received attention beyond the South.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“I’ve always been drawn to research-driven projects.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
As interest around the salt grew, a new question emerged: how could a small local product reach professional kitchens? He reached out directly to the local co-operative and placed an order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“I still remember the first order. It was 100 kilogrammes. The chairman of the farmers’ co-operative delivered it himself. He asked what I planned to do with it and I told him we wanted to test it in a caramel sauce for a gelato shop. He said, ‘Alright, tell me more.'”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
That conversation led to Pattani, where the reality of the industry became clearer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“Production here is tiny. Most people aren’t doing it as a commercial business. They do it because it’s part of their way of life.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
What he found was a tradition that had lasted for more than 400 years despite limited demand and output. Pattani would never compete on volume.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“We went into it on faith. We knew the supply would always be limited. There was no economy of scale. If we couldn’t compete on quantity, then we had to make it as premium as possible.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
That belief shaped everything that came next. Investment went into research, laboratory testing and collaboration with researchers at Prince of Songkla University. His background working in fast-paced consumer goods (FMCG) companies helped build structure around the process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n“Most of Thailand’s salt comes from Samut Songkhram, Phetchaburi and Samut Sakhon. Together they account for almost all national production. Pattani produces around one per cent. In a good year, we’re talking hundreds of tonnes. Phetchaburi alone produces hundreds of thousands. At that point, I simply felt I wanted to help. That was the whole reason.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
The early days looked less like a business and more like experimentation. Equipment was bought with little certainty that any of it would work. A failed attempt to wash salt led him into books, research and traditional salt-making methods from Europe and beyond. <\/p>\n\n\n\n