SUPER SPECIOSA KRATOM PRODUCTS REMAIN AVAILABLE IN OHIO AFTER COURT RULING ON EMERGENCY KRATOM RULE

As laws shift across the country, Super Speciosa remains dedicated to offering high-quality, natural products that adhere to all regulations put on kratom products. 

What is happening in Ohio is just the latest example of that commitment. 

A back-and-forth over kratom regulations in the state put Ohio customers in the crosshairs of an attempt by the Board of Pharmacy (BOP) to target all kratom products. At first, the BOP clarified that products derived from natural kratom leaf would be exempted from the emergency rule, but later actions by the board caused confusion over if the rule could be expanded. That confusion was clarified by a recent decision in court, and has cleared the way for Super Speciosa to continue serving kratom consumers in Ohio. 

Initially, the BOP scheduled a hearing last August to discuss the kratom situation in the state. That meeting was cancelled to further investigate the issue, which led to a request by Gov. Mike DeWine in December for the BOP to target what it called “mitragynine-related compounds” with an emergency rule that moved those products to Schedule I. 

That rule created confusion with how the rule was worded, with the BOP eventually clarifying that natural kratom products were exempt from the rule process. Even with the clarification, DeWine still indicated that he held “deep concerns” about natural kratom, and indicated that the formal rulemaking process could widen the scope of which products were illegal in the state. 

Natural Leaf vs. 7-Hydroxymitragynine

Due to this ambiguity, a group of retailers filed a lawsuit to seek clarification on the process and the scope of the emergency rule. 

Earlier this month, the court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and issued a final judgment that clarified that the emergency rule cannot be enforced against natural leaf kratom products that contain trace amounts of the “mitragynine-related compounds” targeted by the BOP. More importantly, the court clarified that the relief granted applies to all kratom products that fit the profile of natural kratom leaf, rather than the restrictive language that created a carve-out for natural products in its “vegetative state.” 

At the heart of this back-and-forth is 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), a lesser alkaloid in the kratom plant that is only found in trace amounts of natural leaf products. The first draft of the BOP’s emergency rule said that products containing any “mitragynine-related compounds” would be targeted by the rule, and was updated to create clarification about natural kratom leaf products without specifically mentioning 7-OH. 

This judgment reinforces what Super Speciosa and other responsible kratom producers have said all along: Access to natural, regulated kratom products is the best path forward for consumers and the kratom industry in the United States. 

Thanks to the court’s ruling, the judgment clearly differentiated between products that contain trace amounts of 7-OH and those with enhanced or synthesized levels of 7-OH. That ruling by the court follows in the footsteps of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). After years of painting all kratom products with a broad brush, the FDA switched its stance last summer and announced its intentions to make 7-OH products Schedule I. 

At the same time, the FDA made it clear that natural leaf kratom products were a separate matter, and clarified that 7-OH products contained an elevated risk factor due to the way the alkaloid affects opioid receptors in the brain. That revelation came after the FDA conducted a dosage study for natural leaf kratom and concluded that those products were “well tolerated”, even at levels far exceeding recommended dosages. 

The decision by the FDA created a new era in kratom regulations, where states have favored regulation over prohibition to provide customers with access to natural kratom leaf products. In many states, kratom products must adhere to rules that dictate how much 7-OH can be included based on the overall alkaloid content. Those same regulations often include label requirements to declare the amount of 7-OH in any given product. 

Super Speciosa’s Commitment to Quality

All Super Speciosa products are derived from natural kratom leaves, backed by lab-testing and strict manufacturing standards in an FDA-registered facility that ensures customers know exactly what they are getting with each product. That level of quality is what led to the FDA using Super Speciosa’s kratom to conduct its dose study. 

Super Speciosa welcomes science-backed regulations and has joined in the fight to advocate for continued access to natural leaf kratom products across the country. While some manufacturers and bad actors have opted to pursue synthetic or artificially enhanced products, Super Speciosa remains committed to providing customers with high-quality products that adhere to the natural profile of the kratom plant. 

That means that in Ohio, or other states that have passed laws to limit the amount of 7-OH available in products labeled as kratom, customers can shop with confidence that they are receiving high-quality, legal products when purchasing from Super Speciosa. 

Whether purchasing dried leaf powder/capsules, gummies or any of the extracts offered by Super Speciosa, customers can quickly and easily access lab-tested products that adhere to even the most restrictive limitations on the amount of 7-OH that can be found in products labeled as natural kratom.