(CN) - A federal judge denied a request by the maker of a dietary supplement that contains a combination kratom leaf and noble kava root to block enforcement of parts of Utah's new Kratom Regulation Act that ban the sale of its product in the state starting Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge Howard Nielson Jr. in Salt Lake City denied the bid for a preliminary injunction brought by Botanic Tonics LLC, the maker of the "feel free" supplement, and the Global Kratom Coalition, an advocacy organization.
The judge, a Donald Trump appointee, rejected the plaintiffs' argument that the state law was preempted by federal laws, particularly the U.S. Food Drug and Cosmetic Act, that regulate dietary supplements.
"The court need not explore what requirements these provisions may establish for labeling kratom products - or, indeed, whether they apply to such products at all - because the text of the statute makes clear that Congress intended to preempt only state requirements 'respecting any claim' made on a label that differ from federally established requirements," he wrote in the Monday ruling.
"The challenged portions of the Kratom Regulation Act, by contrast, are silent with respect to the labeling of products containing kratom like feel free; they merely prohibit the sale of kratom mixed with any 'nonkratom substance' other than an 'inert encapsulating agent,'" the judge added.
Neither was Nielson persuaded that the Utah law is preempted by implication because it's supposedly impossible to comply with the state law and federal law simultaneously. Even if "feel free" is considered an unadulterated dietary supplement under federal statute, the judge said, federal law doesn't require that it be sold.
"Stated plainly, the plaintiffs can comply with both state and federal law simply by declining to sell feel free in Utah," Nielson said.
A tree native to Indonesia, Thailand and other tropical regions of the Pacific and a relative of the coffee plant, kratom has been chewed or brewed into a tea for hundreds of years to improve alertness and stamina. At low doses - say, a quarter to a full teaspoon stirred into a cup of boiling water - kratom acts much like coffee: there's a little buzz, maybe some pain relief and a tendency to want to get things done. The effect wears off after a few hours.
Unlike caffeine, however, kratom keys to the same part of the brain as opioids like Oxycontin and heroin. That makes it an interesting compound to drug researchers, and it may be a helpful substance for people trying to kick opioid addictions.
However, the product can be addictive, and excessive consumption of kratom has been known to cause death.
Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed the Kratom Regulation Act int law on March 26. The law prohibits the sale of enhanced or synthesized kratom products, which until now could be found at gas stations and convenience stores in the state. Whole leaf kratom can still be sold at smoke shops to customers ages 21 and over.
Attorneys for the Botanical Tonics and the Global Kratom Coalition didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon.
They filed a notice of interlocutory appeal of the ruling with the Tenth Circuit.
Source: Courthouse News Service
