FDA

In the eyes of the FDA and other parts of the government, Kratom is a dangerous substance. For consumers who have found a place for Kratom in their lives, it’s a life-saver.

But in the eyes of disreputable sellers, Kratom is nothing more than a great way to cut a huge profit margin! The problem with these sellers getting worse every year. As Kratom becomes more popular, more sellers are releasing untested and dangerous products.

Everybody loves a good deal, but when you find a Kratom seller that is consistently priced far below market value, you would be right to be suspicious.

Cheap Kratom Means Cutting Costs

Every reputable business, like ours here at Left Coast Kratom, is able to cut costs from time to time. We do our best to balance our desire to turn a profit (we are a business after all!) with the desire to keep our prices fair for our customers.

Even if we didn’t want to make any profit, however, there is a limit to how low we could make our prices while still providing quality Kratom.

Daily, however, we see dishonest Kratom sites selling at prices lower than we find to be possible. Just how is it that these sites are getting their prices so low?

There are three main ways that we believe these sites are able to keep operating.

Not Employing Qualified Staff

Kratom is a specialized substance that has very real effects on your body. To ensure that the best products are sourced, the information on the website is correct, and the customer service to help you get the right Kratom are up to par, it’s necessary for companies to invest in qualified staff.

Here at Left Coast, we’re very proud of the team that we have put together to keep this site running and to keep our priority, customers like you, happy throughout their entire purchase process.

Not Hiring QA Staff

Another type of staffing that is very important is what we call QA staff. QA, short of quality assurance, is an essential part of the Kratom staffing we think that every company should have.

These staff members are responsible for ensuring the Kratom is inspected, tested, and packaged in ways that will keep it safe and secure for our customers. Many sites that sell Kratom for very cheap cut QA staff out altogether.

Because there are no formal rules about requiring QA staff to be able to sell Kratom, they can easily do this to increase their profit margin.

Limited (If Any) Testing

Finally, we’ve come to the most important thing: testing.

Testing Kratom is an essential step in the sales process. Without the right tests, consumers might receive products that have been contaminated with pathogens or heavy metals that will ultimately cause damage to your body.

We don’t believe in or agree with selling untested products.

There are many parts of the supply chain that need to happen to ensure that only safe products ever make it into customers’ hands:

• Quality checking at the supplier’s warehouses
• Product testing for any type of contamination
• Sanitation procedures
• Quality control tests

Keeping all of these tests going can be expensive, but we know how important it is to be sure that our product is as safe as possible.

How Can We Fight Back Against Cheap Kratom?

As we said before, we know that everyone loves a good bargain, but getting your supply of Kratom for a great price and buying cheap, untested Kratom are two very different things.

In fact, cheap Kratom saturating the market actually makes the case for the legalization and regulation of Kratom even harder. These substances help to build on the bad public perception that Kratom already has because they are untested and unpredictable.

With those types of cheap products representing all that Kratom can be, what else would we expect to see happening?

For that reason, it’s incredibly important that we take steps to fight back again cheap Kratom. And there are a few ways that you can help do just that!

Check For Testing

Before you buy from any Kratom vendor, make sure that you look on their website for any information that they have about testing.

At Left Coast Kratom, we test every lot of Kratom that we sell. When you receive our product, you’ll be able to see which lot number the Kratom is part of, and this will let you know where it fell into line when it came to quality control checks.

Only buying from vendors that support and follow through with lab testing their Kratom is essential for Kratom customers. By doing this, you’re showing the market that there is a desire for safety checks, and that will help to weed out cheap kratom vendors.

Support The AKA Good Manufacturing Practices Standards

Another thing that you can do is to only buy from vendors who become certified by the American Kratom Association for following GMP standards.

GMP standards, also known as Good Manufacturing Practices Standards, are a set of rules and regulations that vendors must prove that they can follow accurately in order to become certified. This certification lets the world know that the vendor is committed to creating and selling safe products.

If your favorite vendor is not yet part of this program, contact them and let them know that it would mean a lot to you as a customer if they took the time and energy to become certified. By letting consumers know about your needs, you’ll be able to help make big changes in the Kratom industry!

Signal Boost AKA’s Work

The Kratom industry would be safer if there were rules put in place by a governing body, such as the FDA, that the vendors needed to sell. At this time, however, the FDA is more interested in banning Kratom than it is investing time into these types of regulations.

AKA, the American Kratom Association, is working tirelessly to ensure that Kratom continues to be available to consumers that want to use it. This work is largely based on testing, education, and safety practices. By supporting AKA, you’ll be supporting the growth of a healthier Kratom industry.

If you’ve been a user of Kratom for some time, you’re probably familiar with the ways that Kratom companies have to be careful about what they say and do. Like many alternative brands, there are a number of restrictions that they must follow when it comes to talking about Kratom consumption and effects.

What are these regulations, and why do they affect Kratom vendors even though there aren’t any true rules in the FDA about Kratom? How do these rules work?

While we happily follow the guidance that we have been given about what is OK and helpful to say to our customers, that doesn’t mean that we think this is the best choice. In fact, we believe that some changes to this system would improve the general opinion of Kratom.

FDA Regulations: Health & Structure/Function Claims

Let’s begin by talking about the various regulations that are in place. These regulations affect any company that creates a product in the affected categories. The two many types of regulation that we need to think about today are health and structure/function claims.

Health Claims

The only claims that the FDA requires pre-approval for are health claims.

A health claim must include two specific components:

1. A substance (food or food component)
2. A disease or health-related condition

Any claim that contains both of these items can be called a health claim. If a claim does not contain both of these things, then it does not fall into the category of what needs to be regulated.

Let’s talk about an example.

A package says that eating more fruit and vegetables promotes better digestion. This would not be considered to be a health claim because there is no specific health-related condition. It also does not talk about a specific food and instead talks about a category of food. Instead, it would be considered to be dietary guidance.

Structure/Function Claims

Another type of claims that we should discuss are what we call structure/function claims. These claims talk about how a specific nutrient or ingredient affects the normal function of the body. Rather than claiming that the substance cures a disease, this type of claim instead talks about how the general well-being of the body can be improved.

For example, saying that “calcium builds strong bones” is a structure/function claim.

When adding a structure/function claim to a product in the US, the FDA does not need to regulate what it says. As long as you have substantial evidence that the claim is true, you are permitted to write about it. Then, you must notify the FDA within 30 days of marketing the product.

The final important aspect of this type of claim is that packaging must clearly indicate that the FDA did not evaluate the claims made. This disclaimer is required, or the FDA could order the product to be pulled from the shelves.

Why Kratom Vendors Can’t Use These

The problem with Kratom is that it is not FDA approved. Most vendors would say that it falls into the alternative health category, but that classification depends largely on how it is imported, sold, and marketed.

Regardless of how Kratom is categorized, Kratom vendors are not legally able to use health claims or structure/function claims.

Let’s break down why that is.

First, health claims are not valid for Kratom.

There is not yet enough evidence supported by the FDA to prove that Kratom can treat any diseases, so there are no valid health claims that can be considered FDA approved and added to Kratom marketing.

There are unreliable Kratom vendors out there who regularly break these rules. They market their product with claims that they can cure cancer or opioid addiction disorders, but these types of health claims are not legal unless regulated by the FDA.

And at this time, the FDA does not support any claims about Kratom, so we can’t say much. This issue is the same in many industries where products and substances aren’t fully vetted by the FDA. So, they cannot make particular claims.

Second, structure/function claims are also not valid for Kratom.

There is not enough substantiated evidence in the eyes of the FDA to make any type of structure base claim. While mitragynine (the main active component in many types of Kratom) has effects on the body, it does not affect the base function level of your body.

For that reason, there is a lot that we as Kratom vendors cannot say about Kratom. We cannot legally make claims about much of what Kratom can and cannot do, and it will likely be some time before Kratom studies are further substantiated.

How You Can Change The Perception of Kratom

You’ve probably realized that there isn’t a lot that we as Kratom vendors are allowed to say about one of the products that we are most proud of working on!

It is frustrating for us to not be able to share what we think this product is capable of, but we understand the need to follow appropriately outlined regulations.

This is one of the many reasons that we support the American Kratom Association’s efforts to get more clarification and guidance about what Kratom vendors can do from the FDA. Because of the lack of regulation, AKA made their own Good Manufacturing Program to help vendors keep their products legal and safe to use.

As a consumer, there are a few things that you can do to help change the tide of how people tend to think about Kratom:

• Support companies that are part of the AKA accreditation program
• Share your positive stories and testimonials
• Put pressure on the FDA and other official organizations to be more transparent
• Support scientific research about Kratom and its effects

You have the power to make changes to the way that the Kratom industry changes in the next few years; don’t waste that power!

Why You Shouldn’t Buy Cheap Kratom (And How Regulation Could Help)