100% All Natural Kratom
FREE Same Day Shipping
FREE Samples with Every Order
Collect Points & Earn Rewards
Kratom Information Blog, Kratom Legislation News
Is Kratom Legal in Mississippi in 2023?
Aug
Mississippi State owes its name to the Mississippi River. This state is the birthplace of blues, Elvis Presley, and root beer.
Interestingly, the University of Mississippi is where you can find the Marijuana Research Facility. It is the only facility that receives federal funding to grow and research the medical properties of marijuana.
You may expect Mississippi to have an open-minded attitude toward Mitragyna speciosa leaf as well. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case.
Is Kratom Legal in Mississippi?
Kratom is legal in most of the Mississippi State. However, several MS counties and towns have made kratom illegal. There are also regular efforts to ban kratom in other municipalities as well as in the entire state.
The earliest efforts to outlaw kratom statewide happened in early 2018. It was a bill aiming to outlaw mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine in any form. It didn’t pass committee. There was another bill later in the same year. Luckily, the authorities amended it and left kratom out of it.
Because the attempt to ban kratom statewide didn’t succeed, residents and officials changed their approach. They decided to tackle kratom legality in Mississippi one state and one city at a time.
It started with Union County and Columbus City. Despite kratom being a botanical product, the bans in both municipalities listed it among synthetic substances. A similar thing happened in Sarasota County, Florida, and San Diego, California.
Kratom Bans 2019
2019 came with a new wave of kratom laws, In March, Caledonia Town criminalized kratom. A week later, the entire Lowndes County (where Columbus City is) decided to criminalize kratom, too. In the following weeks, so did Monroe County, Alcorn County, Tishomingo County, and Itawamba County.
Unfortunately, Alcorn and Tishomingo are some of the highest opioid-prescribing counties in the United States. Thus, this ban is preventing people in these counties from getting access to a more natural alternative. Without access to kratom, these people are more likely to turn to considerably more harmful illicit drugs such as heroin.
This is what happened to the former Arkansas resident Bethany Cook.
Fleeing a Kratom Ban
Having developed an addiction to prescription opioids, Bethany Cook would use up her prescribed monthly amount in as little as three days.
She no longer had prescription medication, and she wasn’t able to afford it on the black market. So, she started using illegal drugs. Heroin became her drug of choice.
Bethany also experienced intense side effects from the other medications. The antidepressants and antianxiety medication she was using altered her demeanor and behavior. She described her state of mind as “homicidal” and was afraid of hurting someone.
Everything changed when a friend introduced her to kratom.
Her quality of life improved, and she felt more content than ever.
Yet, Arkansas banned it. This meant going back to opioids or moving to a place where kratom remained legal.
So, Bethany moved to the neighboring Mississippi. Now, she may face the same destiny. She fears kratom laws preventing her from accessing the herb. If this happens, she will move again to regain her access to kratom.
In the meantime, Bethany isn’t getting too attached. She’s also volunteering for the American Kratom Association (AKA) to keep kratom legal in other parts of the state.
While Hernando where Bethany lives has not passed any laws banning kratom, this can change at any moment. Other municipalities, such as Lee County, are considering outlawing kratom, too.
Efforts to Schedule Kratom in 2020 and 2021
The proponents of a kratom ban in Mississippi weren’t willing to give up in 2020 either. Senator Charles Younger sponsored a bill that intended to make kratom a Schedule I drug. The bill was introduced on January 17, 2020. Two more bills (this and this) intending to include kratom in the controlled substances list followed.
Luckily, all three bills above died in committee.
2021 was no different. Five more bills (this, this, this, this, and this) followed.
Luckily, all five failed. Kratom remains legal in most of Mississippi.
Nonetheless, in late 2021, another Mississippi county made a move to criminalize kratom. In December 2021, Pearl River County leaders unanimously voted to ban kratom sales.
The List of Municipalities in Mississippi that Banned Kratom
According to available news reports, a total of 33 cities and counties in Mississippi have criminalized kratom.
The counties in Mississippi that banned kratom (in alphabetic order):
- Alcorn
- Calhoun
- Itawamba
- Lowndes
- Monroe
- Noxubee
- Pearl River
- Prentiss
- Tippah
- Tishomingo
- Union
As well as, the towns in Mississippi that have made kratom illegal (in alphabetic order):
- Belmont
- Blue Mountain
- Booneville
- Bruce
- Burnsville
- Caledonia
- Calhoun
- Columbus
- Corinth
- Derma
- Fulton
- Guntown
- Iuka
- Mantachie
- Marietta
- New Albany
- Okolona
- Oxford
- Pontotoc
- Ripley
- Saltillo
- Senatobia
- Tishomingo
- Vardaman
Are Bans Based on Real or Biased Data?
The main argument against the herb is that it’s deadly. Officials and news sources state that in North Mississippi kratom was present in 12 overdose victims’ blood.
Curiously, Oxford County (which has also considered banning kratom) Police Interim Chief Jeff McCutchen issued an interesting statement. He said that kratom wasn’t necessarily “the primary cause but it was involved.” We have no data on what else was present in the victims’ blood. However, such wording once again appears to be an unfair attempt to put the blame on kratom.
The fact that kratom was present in these people’s blood doesn’t mean that those were caused by kratom. It would be equivalent to saying that the overdose victims had bacon or coffee in their system and that it caused their death.
As you can imagine, there are locals who aren’t satisfied with such an approach to kratom legality in Mississippi.
How to Support Kratom
While there are currently no active kratom bills in the state, that isn’t a reason to relax.
Mississippi has previously expressed willingness to schedule kratom, and bills can once again endanger the legal status of the herb. Senator Jeff Tate filed a bill to ban kratom in 2020 and, since it failed, expressed his intent to file it again. One of his arguments was that his 6-year old daughter could easily buy it.
Many locals consider kratom a dangerous drug of concern and want it gone for good. They want the sales and possession of kratom to be a crime. News outlets emphasize the statement that kratom is a drug and that it was the cause of death in nearly 100 instances, citing the misleading data from the CDC.
In the meantime, others believe that many residents need kratom to improve their wellbeing. So, they support different legislation – the Kratom Consumer Protection Act.
The Kratom Consumer Protection Act or KCPA is legislation proposed by the American Kratom Association (AKA), a non-profit activist group. Instead of banning the herb, it proposes regulating it to ensure that it’s free of any dangerous additives. The regulations would also ensure that kratom products have proper labeling and that minors can’t buy them.
Breaking these regulations would result in penalties such as fines and jail time.
If you’d like to prevent a ban in your home state and help critics understand kratom better, you can become a kratom advocate. You can also donate or contact your local AKA representative to learn about other ways you can help.
Where to Buy Kratom in Mississippi?
People can purchase kratom in smoke and vape shops, gas stations, and convenience stores across the Mississippi State. Yet, not all the kratom products available for sale there contain pure kratom powder. Retailers sell them right next to different questionable substances.
In order to avoid damaging the reputation of kratom further, we advise that you buy your favorite kratom strains online. Choose reliable and trustworthy vendors who lab test each batch and only sell pure kratom powder.
For more information on kratom laws in the United States and the latest kratom legality map, view this post on our blog.
We aim to have the latest information on kratom available on our website. However, at times, we won’t be able to locate everything. Do you reside in Mississippi and have data on whether kratom is legal in certain Mississippi cities and counties? Don’t hesitate to leave us a comment to let us know about any changes or relevant news. We would absolutely appreciate that.
I forgot to ask about Panola County, Batesville, Ms or Yalobusha County in Ms.
According to what’s available to us, it does not seem that kratom is banned in these locations. However, we’re had a hard time locating definite locations in Mississippi state where kratom has been banned. So, we’d advise you to double-check that with local sources.
You have chronic pain & lost a child & the doctors can’t give you any pain pills or anything for anxiety. I found something that works & I’m not worried about where I’m gonna get my help anymore. I would imagine the pharmaceutical companies are having a fit. All the deaths due to drugs & they are trying to do away with this. I hope they fight for us in Ms. Ban oxycodone, fentanyl & all the other deadly drugs. Count the overdoses on those.
Hello and thank you for reaching out to us and sharing your experience. We’re sorry to hear that doctors aren’ providing you with adequate support. We agree that kratom is misrepresented in the media some prescription drugs are much more dangerous.
It is frustrating trying to locate a list of all the towns and counties that have banned kratom. But Fulton, Mantachie, and New Albany are not counties. They are towns.
Thank you very much for letting us know that. We most definitely appreciate it. We’ve made the edit accordingly.
Do you have ay ideas about if someone sell them and the police find out so what they going do for him and how many years he will stay in jail and how much they going charge him?
Hello Basel,
Since it’s individual counties and cities banning kratom, it would depend on which city or county you specifically would be interested in. Reviewing their regulations on controlled substances should answer your queries.
Hi. I live in Northeast Mississippi(the ban area) and I try to go to the public meetings, when they choose to have one. Since kratom is still legal statewide, people caught with kratom in the ban areas get arrested and charged with a misdemeanor. It’s up to $1000 for the fine and up to 6 months in jail, or both. It’s just awful here.
That’s sad to hear, Lesley. We really hope that the situation improves.
Something needs to be done for them punishing people that’s never even been on drugs! I’m In the same situation although I think it’s still legal in my area I don’t have insurance right now and kratom is the only way I have found relief from pain ect.. a shame they want to put this in the same category as LSD and so on because it’s NO WHERE NEAR THAT.. a cigarette gets u more high than I’ve felt off of kratom! Sick people in the world. One man said if people need relief from pain they don’t get it from gas stations well whoever he was I don’t buy kratom from a gas station but from decent vendors. We are not free in this world and it’s only getting worse! I pray something can be done to overrule these pathetic acts just because the big pharmaceutical companies isn’t getting good business once someone finds out about a natural way to help hem!
Does the ban mean that kratom is illegal, or just not available for retail. I had heard that you could still order it wholesale in alcorn county.
Hello, Matthew, and thanks for contacting us regarding the matter. It would depend on how specifically the law has been worded, and it doesn’t seem to be available online. However, a kratom ban normally covers production, retail, distribution, and possession; so, it is highly unlikely that wholesale would be allowed if retail isn’t.
On several occasions, there’ve been misunderstandings regarding the wording. For instance, a few states had listed alkaloids as synthetic substances and people were debating whether natural kratom would then be considered legal. It wasn’t. There have been other instances that bans have occurred in secret without the public knowing about them. Kratom businesses also did not know about the ban and were operating for some time despite the ban.
Since there is very limited information on Alcorn and other counties across Mississippi, it may be possible that not all online kratom vendors know about which counties and cities have banned it.
It’s illegal to sell it or possess it in the ban areas. The Monroe County sheriff said in a local newspaper that it is also illegal to order it online.
Thank you for sharing this, Lesley. Take care and stay safe.
This is the best thing I have found for my depression, my anxiety, my arthritis, and it’s all natural and they are trying to make it illegal, I don’t understand, I do order my own line and I’m afraid of what’s going happen if and when I get get it anymore, I guess the pharmaceutical wants me on pain pills and depression medication instead of something that’s natural
Hello, Tina,
We’re sorry to hear that and truly hope that the situation will turn for the better in Mississippi.
Since they banned it in Tish Co last week I will be moving to TN as soon as I can find my family a home up there. This NATURAL tree leaf saved my life and I will not go back to the miserable half existence I had before I found it 8 years ago. We were given no warning and I only even found out because I know a convenience store owner who sold it at his store. I had to dispose of what I had because I can’t risk getting into trouble. Most vendors will not ship to a known banned county so you may run into trouble ordering it online even. I do know of a few who will keep shipping though (and have quality pure kratom) so they are out there. Best bet, if you can, is to move to TN or another state that is not trying to ban it completely. The scary thing is though, like MS, the individual counties can ban it even if the state doesn’t. It is insane!
Just an FYI to my fellow MS residents. Kratom was banned in Alcorn county earlier this week.
Hello Christina, and thank you for letting us know. We’ve included that in the post.
Senatobia voted to ban it but they did not criminalize it.
Thank you for the update.
This really ticks me off to no end. I took my pain meds as directed, went to same dr for 17 years every 3 months, passed drug tests only to have it taken away. No insurance means I can not afford pain management so kratom was a way to manage my pain. I’ve never abused opioids but I’m being punished. What is the alternative now?