Kratom is increasing in popularity nationwide and more people are becoming interested in trying the herb. Historically, kratom has been sold predominately in smoke shops, vape stores, or dispensaries. Online retailers are now taking center stage too. However, many online shoppers want to purchase kratom on Amazon. Sadly, the internet giant offers a wide array of natural supplements but does not sell kratom.

What happens when you search for kratom on Amazon?

When you try to search for kratom on Amazon, a number of items will come up that looks similar to kratom but once you read the fine print you will discover that they do not contain any plant material. Sadly, sellers often use this crooked tactic to confuse customers. Many fraudulent companies try to push their products as kratom or kratom imitations to mislead users.

Why doesn’t Amazon sell kratom?

Amazon has always shied away from controversial products and they consider kratom to be at the top of the list. Due to the constant upheaval surrounding the herb with the United States DEA and FDA, Amazon abstains from selling the herb even though they constantly refer to themselves as the ‘Everything Store’ you won’t find Mitragyna speciosa in any form on the site. In this article, we will explore some of the reasons why kratom on Amazon is taboo.

What is Kratom?

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Buying Kratom

Kratom is an herbal supplement obtained from the Mitragyna speciosa tree. The topical tree is a member of the coffee family and grows throughout much of Southeast Asia. Locals gather the foliage of the tree and dry it through a curing process. It is then ground or pounded into a fine matter or powder. The locals use kratom by brewing tea, ingesting the powder, or chewing the foliage. Naturopathic doctors in the region have prescribed kratom for centuries for a variety of health issues. Local laborers regularly chew the leaves for an energy boost to get through a grueling workday. Many brew the tea to enjoy as a social beverage or during festivals.

History of kratom on Amazon

Kratom was not always a no-no on Amazon. In fact, years ago buyers could purchase the herb on the popular site. However, from 2012 to 2014, the FDA stopped all shipments of kratom to the USA. The widescale nationwide confiscation sent red flags and made Amazon scramble to remove the product from their website in a mass cleansing effort. When 2017 dawned, the FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb stated, “that kratom could not be approved for therapeutic use.” With the FDA shying away from kratom and unwilling to give any sort of approval, many stores (even brick and mortar establishments) started to remove kratom from their shelves. Amazon believes firmly in its guarantee of offering only products that are safe for its users. The online platform refuses to offer products for sale that are controversial, banned, illegal, or controlled in any way by the FDA.

DEA and Kratom

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DEA Against Kratom

The United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has spent a considerable amount of time and energy trying to ban kratom in the United States. In 2016, the DEA announced that they plan to ban the herb nationwide. The announcement spurred a great deal of uproar in the press and most vendors started to avoid kratom because of the negativity associated with the herb. Kratom on Amazon became a thing of the past and the online platform focused on avoiding the herb completely. Other retailers worked to rename or relabel their kratom products using only the strain’s name such as White Thai, Maeng Da, or Red Borneo to avoid the unpleasant association with ‘kratom’. Luckily, the DEA failed at making kratom illegal but the stigma remains.

Double Standard of Kratom on Amazon

Many kratom users feel that Amazon simply makes its own rules and exists with a double standard. Buyers can easily find Kava Kava on Amazon. Kava Kava is a psychoactive plant that is negatively viewed by the press because it creates very nasty side effects on many users. When comparing Kava Kava with kratom it becomes very confusing why Amazon allows one but not the other and users often feel discouraged.

What Countries Ban Kratom?

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Countries that Ban Kratom

Amazon does not just offer service to the United States, in fact, they provide products on a global scale to virtually every country in the world. Kratom is legal in many countries but remains banned in other regions of the world. Amazon appears to follow eBay’s lead and tries to not sell products that are illegal in many locations. If Amazon did sell kratom to countries where the herb is illegal, then people purchasing the item would seek legal ramifications that would embroil Amazon in a battle with the government of the restricted area. Since the entire situation is gray, Amazon tries to avoid dealing with the problem

Currently, kratom is banned in the following countries that Amazon serves:

  • Denmark
  • Finland
  • Israel
  • Lithuania
  • Myanmar
  • Poland
  • Romania
  • Singapore
  • Sweden
  • Vietnam

Even in the United States, kratom is legal nationwide but local cities and counties have taken steps to make the herb illegal.

Currently, kratom in the United States is banned in the following places:

  • Jerseyville, Illinois
  • Denver, Colorado
  • Union County, Mississippi
  • San Diego, California
  • Sarasota County, Florida

Where to buy Kratom?

Even though kratom is not sold on Amazon, you do have options when it comes to reputable retailers. You’ll find a wide assortment of online retailers. At My Kratom Club, we sell numerous strains of kratom HERE.

You can also buy kratom at vape shops, smoke shops, gas stations, and naturopathic food stores, However, at the brick and mortar stores, you might not find quality. In many cases, the herbs might be nearing or past the expiration date for freshness. Typically, you’ll find higher-quality kratom from reputable online sites.

If you don’t want to buy kratom powder, capsules, or other products that contain the plant material then you might want to check out kratom on Amazon to find ebooks about the herb or other helpful research papers that remain perfectly legal on the online site.

Buying kratom

No, you cannot buy kratom on Amazon, but you can purchase it in other locations. Please practice caution because there is a wide assortment of scams on the internet, so you’ll want to make sure you buy from a reputable vendor with known brands. Look to see if the seller is a member of the American Kratom Association (AKA) which is an organization that stands up for kratom and maintains strict criteria for vendors in an attempt to set the standard and to ensure that a buyer is receiving a quality product.

Another thing to look for is GMP certification on any kratom brand that you purchase. If a kratom brand has GMP certification then it means that the plants have been ethically harvested and tested. All products have undergone laboratory testing for salmonella, E. coli, staph, yeast, mold, and purity.

Here are a few concise tips when buying kratom:

  • Always check to make sure the vendor belongs to the American Kratom Association
  • Look closely at the vendors’ reviews to read customer stories and make sure that they experienced a specific level of satisfaction when dealing with the store.
  • Make sure the product is 100 percent natural Mitragyna speciosa.
  • Look to see where the laboratory tests were carried out
  • Do not hesitate to reach out to the company with questions or concerns to see how fast they respond.

Just following these specific tips can help find high-quality kratom products.

Finding quality kratom

You’ll find kratom in many forms such as extracts, powders, capsules, and tinctures. It is typically classified based on green, white, yellow, and red vein colors. Usually, you can easily find kratom capsules and powders from a variety of online vendors. Capsules are remarkably convenient, but they are also more expensive than powders. You can also buy kratom tea. To make the taste of the plant’s alkaloids you can add sweeteners to make the beverage more pleasurable.

Although you cannot buy kratom on Amazon, as mentioned, you can locate a variety of retailers that sell quality products to meet your unique needs. Reach out to an online vendor that provides excellent customer service if you have any questions. At My Kratom Club, our customer service experts are ready to meet your needs. Please contact us if you have any questions or would like to learn more about our many kratom products.