Kanna Consumer Protection Act

§1Purpose

Kanna is sold in the United States with no product rules of its own. This act sets the minimum a kanna product has to meet: tested, honestly labeled, sold only to adults, and carrying the warnings people actually need. Coalition members agree to follow it as a condition of membership. It is also written as a model bill for any state that decides to regulate kanna, so lawmakers have a workable option that isn't a ban.

§2Definitions

1. Kanna means the plant Sceletium tortuosum and any part of it, dried, fermented or otherwise processed.
2. Kanna product means any food, beverage, supplement, tea, tincture, capsule, powder, extract or other product that contains kanna or is sold as containing kanna.
3. Total alkaloids means the combined amount of mesembrine, mesembrenone, mesembrenol and mesembranol, reported in milligrams.
4. High potency product means any kanna extract or concentrate, any product sold with a stated extraction ratio or alkaloid percentage, and any product with alkaloids added to it. Dried whole plant, cut and powdered plant, and simple teas made from them are not high potency products.
5. Dealer means anyone who makes, packages, distributes, sells or offers kanna products for sale, in person or online.
6. Accredited lab means an independent laboratory accredited to ISO/IEC 17025 with the test methods it uses for kanna in its scope.

§3Certificates of analysis

1. Every batch of every kanna product is tested by an accredited lab before it is sold. A dealer may rely on the maker's COA if the lot number matches what is on the package.
2. The COA reports:
   • each of the four main alkaloids and total alkaloids, in mg per gram and mg per serving
   • heavy metals: lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury
   • microbes: total yeast and mold, E. coli and Salmonella
   • residual solvents, for any extract made with a solvent
3. The COA is posted publicly and linked from the label by a QR code or short web address. Customers do not have to email anyone to see it.
4. A batch that fails any contaminant limit is not sold. A batch whose alkaloid content is more than 20 percent off the label is relabeled before it is sold.

Contaminant limits in draft 0.1 follow the USP limits for dietary supplements. The founding members vote to confirm or change them.

§4Labeling

Every kanna product label shows:

1. The common and Latin name: "Kanna (Sceletium tortuosum)."
2. The form: whole plant, powder, extract, tincture, capsule, beverage and so on. Extracts say "extract" on the front panel.
3. Net weight or volume, serving size and servings per package.
4. A potency statement. Any product containing a kanna extract states the extract amount and its total alkaloid percentage together, in the same line and the same type size, followed by the total alkaloids in milligrams per serving. An extract amount on its own is not allowed.
5. Total alkaloids per serving and per package, matching the COA.
6. All other ingredients.
7. Lot or batch number and a QR code or web address for that lot's COA.
8. The name and a US address, phone number or email of the company responsible for the product.
9. The medication warning in §5, plus the high potency warning in §6 where it applies.
10. "For adults 21 and over. Keep out of reach of children and pets."

Potency statement: what passes and what doesn't

"50 mg of kanna extract" tells a customer almost nothing. One 50 mg extract can be 0.4% alkaloids and another can be 40%. That is a hundred times difference in strength behind the same number.

The percentage comes from the COA for that lot. If a product mixes more than one extract, each one gets its own potency line, and the total alkaloids per serving is the sum.

Labels make no claim that kanna diagnoses, treats, cures or prevents any disease.

§5Medication interaction warning

Mesembrine, the main alkaloid in kanna, acts on serotonin reuptake. Taking kanna on top of medications that also raise serotonin can raise the risk of serotonin syndrome, which can be serious. Every kanna product carries this warning on the label and on its product page:

Online, the same warning appears on the product page above the add to cart button, not only in a tab or the fine print.

§6High potency products

1. High potency products carry this warning in addition to §5:

2. The front panel carries the full potency statement from §4(d), for example "Kanna extract, 5% total alkaloids, 50 mg," with total alkaloids per serving on the same panel. A ratio like "10:1" may be shown as well but never replaces the percentage.
3. High potency products are not sold in packaging, flavors or formats that look like candy or snacks made for kids.
4. Retail stores keep high potency products behind the counter or in a locked display.

§7Age gating

1. No kanna product is sold to anyone under 21.
2. Websites selling kanna use an age gate on entry and verify age at checkout, using a third party age verification check or ID upload for a customer's first order.
3. Shipments of high potency products require an adult signature where the carrier offers it.
4. Retail staff check ID for anyone who looks under 40.
5. Wholesale accounts agree in writing to follow this section.

§8Adulteration and synthetics

1. No synthetic, semi-synthetic or chemically altered alkaloids are sold as kanna, and none are added to a kanna product.
2. No kanna product contains a controlled substance, an undeclared drug, or any ingredient not listed on the label.
3. Kanna is sourced from growers holding the permits required in their country. For South African material that means permits under South Africa's biodiversity laws, which include benefit sharing with the Khoi and San communities whose traditional knowledge of the plant is recognized.

§9Marketing

1. No disease claims, in ads, on labels, on social media or by affiliates.
2. No marketing aimed at anyone under 21, and no cartoon characters, candy imagery or youth focused influencers.
3. No calling kanna "safe for everyone," "non-addictive" or "FDA approved."

§10Member verification

1. To be listed as verified, a member sends the coalition current COAs, label proofs and screenshots of its age gate and product pages for every kanna product it sells.
2. The coalition may buy any member product at retail and send it to an accredited lab. A member whose product fails §3 or §8 is taken off the verified list until the problem is fixed.
3. Verification is reviewed every 12 months.

Member registry

Companies listed here have joined the coalition. "Verified" means the coalition has reviewed their COAs, labels and age gating against this act.

Sell kanna and want your company on this list? Apply here.