Is Kratom Legal in Louisiana in 2023?

Louisiana got its name after King Louis XIV of France and means “the Land of Louis.” It’s popular for Mardi Gras and the French Quarter in New Orleans, its largest city. It’s also the birthplace of jazz and another popular Louis – jazz virtuoso Louis Armstrong.

Louisiana is the only state in the US that has no counties but consists of parishes instead. It also has the highest population of alligators in the country. Around 2 million of them, in case you wanted to know.

But let’s get into the topic that you’re really interested in…

Kratom legality in the Pelican State.

Is Kratom Legal in Louisiana?

Currently, kratom is legal in Louisiana, except for Ascension Parish and Rapides Parish. There have been several intents to ban kratom statewide, but none of them succeeded. A bill to regulate kratom statewide also did not pass.

A beneficial plant from Southeast Asia, Mitragyna speciosa or kratom has leaves that come in three different vein types: red, green, and white. Each has a wealth of beneficial properties. Red kratom is soothing, white is energizing, and green kratom is a balanced combo of the two.

Despite its good properties, kratom has had a rocky presence in the west.

The state of Louisiana has tried to ban kratom leaf on several occasions.

In 2014, the authorities received the first bill regarding kratom. It suggested adding to the controlled drug list any material, mixture, or compound that contained kratom alkaloids. The alkaloids indicated were mitragynine, 7-hydroxymitragynine, and Mitragynine pseudoindoxyl. The bill eventually died in committee.

Yet, in 2015, the Louisiana Senate received the same bill. This time it passed, but legislators amended it and excluded kratom compounds from it.

In the first half of 2018, the kratom salmonella outbreak affected three people in the state of Louisiana. Luckily, none of the people involved in the outbreak died. Yet, kratom critics used the incident to their advantage.

In May 2018, came another bill. It urged the Louisiana Department of Health to study kratom and decide whether it should be included in the Controlled Substances Act.

This bill passed, and so did a second bill to study kratom. It came into effect in May 2019. The main arguments used were that kratom is an unregulated product and that it is easily available in gas stations and similar locations.

Kratom Legislation in 2019

A new bill on kratom legality in Louisiana was introduced in March 2019. Its aim was to criminalize kratom if the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) classified it or its alkaloids as illegal substances.

The bill passed. But, before you freak out, keep in mind that scheduling any substance is a complex process that involves several institutions. The DEA is just one of the cogs necessary to enact a federal-level kratom ban.

Let’s take a look at the process a bit closer. We know you’re busy, so we’ll keep it short and not use up too much of your time.

How Does the DEA Schedule Substances?

The DEA can go through with a ban:

• Based on its own decision,
• Following a recommendation of the Health and Human Services (HHS), or
• Following the petition of another interested party, like the FDA.

Once a suggestion is made, the DEA must request the HHS for a medical and scientific evaluation. Then, the HHS delegates this to the FDA.

The FDA must consider various factors, such as:

• The abuse and dependence potential,
• Risk to public health,
• Current scientific knowledge on the substance,
• Scientific evidence of the pharmacological properties it provides, and
• Whether it’s immediately related to another controlled substance.

The FDA then decided if a substance should be scheduled. If the decision is to schedule, the DEA must proceed.

You may recall this process from the year 2016. The DEA issued its intent to ban kratom, which it eventually withdrew. For over two years, we were kept in the dark about why that happened.

It turned out that the HHS withdrew its recommendation to make kratom an illegal drug due to the lack of evidence proving its danger. The FDA didn’t make this information public.

New studies are currently being performed on kratom, and they’ve already had positive outcomes.

While the FDA does not meet the requirements to ban kratom in the United States, its views on kratom haven’t changed. It continues working hard to accomplish its goal.

This time, it’s trying to persuade the World Health Organization (WHO) to make kratom an illegal drug internationally.

Efforts to Regulate Kratom in the State of Louisiana

On February 28, 2020, a bill intending to regulate the Southeast Asian herb kratom in Louisiana was introduced. This new law is known as the Louisiana Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA).

The KCPA is one of the initiatives of the American Kratom Association (AKA), a non-profit activist organization. It wants to help the kratom community by ensuring that kratom remains legal and the access to it safe. Kratom is helping millions of Americans to improve their quality of life, and the AKA wants to keep it this way.

The new law would have made regulations of the manufacturing, sales, distribution, and labeling of kratom products mandatory.

Unfortunately, the bill died in committee despite the benefits it would have provided to kratom customers.

Kratom remains legal in Louisiana but unregulated.

Kratom Bans in Ascension Parish and Rapides Parish

In 2022, two Louisiana parishes proceeded with a kratom ban. Ascension Parish outlawed kratom sales in August 2022. The initial proposal included the possession of kratom, as well. However, the local government chose to only focus on sales. As a result, you can still possess kratom in Ascenson Parish, but you can neither buy or sell it.

In October 2022, Rapides Parish followed suit. While Ascension Parish only focused on kratom sales, the Rapides Parish Police Jury voted to ban both kratom possession and sales.

At the moment, kratom is legal in the rest of Louisiana state.

Where Can You Buy Kratom in Louisiana?

There are multiple tobacco stores in New Orleans and other Louisiana municipalities that sell kratom products locally.

Nonetheless, local smoke shops aren’t the best place where one can buy kratom. We always suggest that users buy kratom online from trusted vendors who test kratom for purity and quality in 3rd-party independent laboratories.

For additional information on kratom laws in your state and the most recent kratom legality map, you can read this post on our blog. 

Would like to purchase fresh, lab-tested kratom powder that not only meets your needs but also complies with the Kratom Consumer Protection Act? Check out our kratom strains for sale. If you’re new here and would like to give us a try first, get our free kratom samples.