San Mateo County bans sale of kratom products

While kratom is a plant, native to Southeast Asia, 7-hydroxymitragynine is a highly potent chemical compound found within. The compound, known at 7-OH, is estimated to be 13 times more potent than morphine, and behaves similarly to traditional opioid. 

Mueller said smoke shops have marketed the sale of kratom right alongside whip-its. San Mateo County banned the sale of whip-its, or nitrous oxide, in August 2025.

“For all the same reasons we were concerned about whip-its … this is being marketed the same way,” Mueller said. 

In the state of California, there is no statewide law banning kratom and 7-OH products, however, there is legislation in the process of seeking restrictions. 

Currently, the state can use federal laws to remove products from being sold, but the state’s Department of Public Health has to triage resources and there are slow responses to getting products out of shops, Mueller said. 

When Mueller requested enforcement at two shops in a city within his district selling kratom, “it took many months to get enforcement, to get the state to coordinate with local enforcement,” he said.

The San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office was ready to address the issue, but had to wait for state support. 

“During that time, I was incredibly frustrated that kids could walk into that shop and purchase,” Mueller said. 

Public Health Officer Dr. Kismet Baldwin-Santana said she was a proponent for the ordinance, knowing the adverse effects of the drug’s use. 

“Even though there is a mechanism through CDPH to enforce and remove these products from retail facilities, it has been noted … it’s not ideal and there are some challenges with the process,” Baldwin-Santana said. “Anything we can do to be proactive and prevent overdoses and death would be much appreciated.”

A handful of public commenters shared their personal use of natural kratom for pain and addiction relief, advocating to not ban the sale. Mueller said if the state moves forward with a ban that includes exceptions, the county’s law will follow suit. 

Supervisors expressed their appreciation in quickly moving the ban forward. 

“This is yet another example as we on the Board of Supervisors’ level can count to three and really make our community safer on so many issues,” Supervisor Jackie Speier said. 

San Mateo County is the first in the Bay Area to adopt an ordinance on this issue and ban the drug’s sale. The goal is for cities to adopt a similar ordinance to prevent the sale in each respective jurisdiction.