Kratom, or Mitragyna Speciosa is a plant Native to Southeast Asia and predominantly cultivated in Indonesia, Kratom is a tropical evergreen tree which is known to grow to heights of up to 25m or 82ft, its in the same genus as the the coffee plant and has been used in traditional medicine since the 19th century, indigenous tribes often chewed the leaves of Kratom to reduce pain, increase energy, appetite and sexual desire.

The key compounds are mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitraynine, at relative to low doses Kratom produces a stimulant like effect, at moderate and higher doses the plant will produce light opioid effects, in terms of strength Kratom is very similar to Coffee and physically impossible to abuse recreation-ally, as any over use of this product results in harmless but unpleasant feelings of nausea, fatigue and dizziness.

Kratom has gained popularity in western culture over the past few years and has a very loyal following, its typically used as a dietary supplement, and sold in powder or capsule form, to aid with pain relief, anxiety, depression, energy and general mental and physical well being, despite being controversial as usually is the case with something we don’t fully understand, Kratom has been a huge benefit to many people and made a positive impact on many lives, in several countries the plant is widely accepted and even protected.

At present the only country producing Kratom or Mitragyna Speciosa, as it’s known among botanists, is Indonesia. Kratom originates in South East Asia and grows wild in what is believed to be almost every country on the continent, stretching as far as Indonesia to Myanmar and potentially further. Unfortunately, Kratom is outlawed in every country on the continent bar Indonesia thus being the only country currently exporting this natural plant. Under BPOM regulations, Indonesia’s equivalent to the FDA in the USA, only raw unprocessed, unadulterated material such as crushed leaf and powder are legal, products such as capsules or extract are illegal.

Indonesia is the most populist Muslim majority country on the planet and according to Islam drugs are haram, however the original Dayak ethnics of Kalimantan, the Indonesian section of Borneo Island, the third biggest on the planet, are originally Catholic and Christian. This being a huge part of the reason Kalimantan has become the largest exporter of Kratom on the planet, producing 85% of the worlds Kratom, only small portions of Kratom are produced in other areas of Indonesia such as Sumatra and Sulawesi, these products would be genetically different enough to be considered a strain.

The state of the kratom market right now is such that due to the vast majority of cultivation and production being confined to just one section of South East Asia in Indonesia, legit strains are scarce. Farmers and vendors have had to result to alternative solutions to provide customers with the variety they desire. At this stage, what are considered strains are in fact mostly the same strain of plant that has been dried, cured and processed differently thus producing a wide variety of colours and effects. It has become common practice for vendors to refer to these products as strains when in fact they’re not. We as a company are also guilty of this and referring to our products as strains has simply become a habit, some are and some are not.

As the market matures there is light at the end of the tunnel, the processes used do in fact have a huge impact on the finished products alkaloid makeup and effects. As Kratom becomes less grey in Indonesia, regulated and produced in more of its 17,508 islands you can be sure that natural selection and genetics will have taken its course. Thailand has also recently passed a bill to legalize the production, export, personal and medical use of Kratom and will be legal within the next four to eight months. Thailand is 1700km from Borneo, we have boots on the ground in this country and can assure you there are immensely noticeable differences in the Kratom here and it’s genetics.

Rest assured! We are one of, if not the only Western kratom company with boots on the ground in South East Asia continuously sniffing out legit strains so that we can provide our customers with the highest quality, potent and legit products on the market.