Kratom is not legal to sell or manufacture in California. On October 24, 2025, the California Department of Public Health issued a statewide consumer warning declaring that foods, dietary supplements, and drugs containing kratom or 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) are dangerous and unlawful under existing state law. The state is treating these products as adulterated under the Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law, meaning they were never lawfully on shelves to begin with. Personal possession of kratom leaf is not addressed by the statewide action, but the City of San Diego separately bans possession within its limits.
What the Statewide Prohibition Covers
The prohibition targets the commercial side. It is illegal to sell, offer for sale, or manufacture kratom products intended for consumption, including capsules, powders marketed as supplements, beverages, and edibles containing kratom or 7-OH. CDPH’s position is that kratom has not been approved as a safe dietary ingredient, so any product sold as one is adulterated under the Sherman Law.
The ban applies at any age. This is not a minors-only restriction, and it is not new legislation. Both CDPH and the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control have framed the action as enforcement of laws already on the books.
Neither the CDPH warning nor the ABC guidance explicitly addresses personal possession of kratom by individual consumers at the state level. If you are not selling or manufacturing, the statewide action does not name you. That silence is not a green light, but it is the current boundary of the state’s stated position.
How the State Is Enforcing the Ban
Enforcement has moved quickly. By March 2026, the Governor’s office announced a 95% compliance rate among California businesses, with more than 3,308 kratom and 7-OH products pulled from store shelves. CDPH has seized more than $5 million worth of product under its authority.
The rollout came in two phases. During an education period in January and February 2026, agents visited over 2,600 business locations to notify vendors and give them time to remove products voluntarily. Full enforcement began February 9, 2026, and agents conducted an additional 1,839 visits after that date, bringing the total past 4,500 location checks. Only 61 violations were identified across all those visits.
Three agencies are coordinating: CDPH, the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, and the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. Vendors that keep selling risk administrative disciplinary action, including suspension or revocation of their ABC license.
San Diego’s Broader Local Ban
San Diego is stricter than the state. The San Diego City Council approved an ordinance on June 14, 2016 that prohibits the manufacturing, sale, distribution, and possession of kratom, grouping it with synthetic drugs like spice and bath salts. Unlike the statewide action, the city ordinance explicitly covers personal possession.
Kratom’s active alkaloids, mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, are listed under San Diego Municipal Code sections 52.3303 and 52.3304. Property owners who receive notice of a violation at their location have 30 calendar days to address the problem before facing additional liability. Temecula considered a similar ordinance around the same time but voted it down.
Could This Change? AB 1088
Assembly Bill 1088, introduced by Assembly Member Bains in February 2025, would move California from prohibition to regulation. The bill was referred to the Assembly Committee on Health in June 2025 and remains in progress. If it passes, kratom products would be brought under the Sherman Law with specific safety rules rather than treated as inherently illegal.
The bill would:
- Prohibit sales of kratom and 7-OH products to anyone under 21.
- Require products to contain specified quantities of alkaloids, blocking dangerously concentrated formulations.
- Mandate detailed labeling and child-resistant packaging.
- Prohibit products designed or marketed in ways attractive to children.
AB 1088 is the legislature’s second attempt at kratom regulation; a similar bill in the 2023–2024 session never reached the governor. Until AB 1088 or something like it becomes law, the enforcement posture described above is the operative rule.
Federal Law
Federal law does not fill the gap. Kratom is not a federally scheduled controlled substance. The DEA considered classifying its active ingredients as Schedule I in August 2016 but withdrew the proposal after public opposition, and no final scheduling decision has followed.
The FDA maintains an active import alert (Import Alert 54-15), most recently updated in February 2025, that lets customs officials detain kratom shipments at the border without physical examination. The FDA’s position is that kratom is an adulterated dietary ingredient because there is inadequate information showing it is reasonably safe, and the agency has issued consumer warnings urging people not to use it. So while there is no federal criminal prohibition, federal regulators are not treating kratom as an approved product either.