The Attorney General's new emergency rule doesn't protect the public — it protects the industry. Here's why.
Florida's first emergency rule treated products containing more than 400 parts per million (0.4 mg/g) of 7‑hydroxymitragynine as Schedule I. That was the original line in the sand.
The new emergency rule raises that concentration limit to 1 mg/g for solid products — two and a half times higher than before.
Let that sink in.
Florida looked at the marketplace, concluded there was an "imminent hazard to public safety," and then responded by allowing more of the very substance it claimed created that emergency.
Yes, the new rule also regulates additional metabolites and analogs. Yes, it requires a 100:1 mitragynine‑to‑7‑OH ratio. Those changes close some potential loopholes.
But they do not change the simple fact that the allowable concentration of 7‑OH in a product is now substantially higher than it was under the original emergency rule.
Even more troubling: the rule regulates concentration — not the total amount contained in a finished product.
That means the rule speaks in terms of milligrams per gram or milligrams per milliliter, but it does not establish a maximum amount per tablet, pouch, bottle, or package.
Here's the math they don't want you to do:
A manufacturer that complies with the concentration and ratio requirements can still produce larger products containing substantially more total 7‑OH than consumers would assume. A 2‑gram gummy at 1 mg/g contains 2 mg of 7‑OH. A 5‑gram gummy at the same concentration contains 5 mg — more than double. Both are "legal" under the new rule.
If Florida believes 7‑OH presents an imminent danger to public health, its regulations should reduce exposure — not increase the allowable concentration while leaving total package content completely unaddressed.
Don't take our word for it. Compare the original emergency order with the new rule side by side. The math is right there in black and white.
Compare the concentration limits. Compare the total amount exemptions. Then ask yourself: who does this really protect?
The original emergency order sent a clear signal: 7‑OH was dangerous enough to warrant Schedule I classification at concentrations above 0.4 mg/g. That was the public health position.
The new rule sends a different signal entirely: 1 mg/g is now acceptable. That's not a tweak. That's a fundamental retreat from the original position.
What changed between the first emergency order and the second? The science didn't change. The chemical didn't change. The only thing that changed was political pressure — likely from the very industry that profits from selling 7‑OH products.
This isn't just a policy wonk's quibble over numbers. This is about real exposure to a substance that Florida itself has classified as an imminent hazard.
Under the old rule, a 1‑gram capsule could contain at most 0.4 mg of 7‑OH before becoming illegal. Under the new rule, that same capsule can now contain 1.0 mg — and it's perfectly legal.
That's 2.5 times more of a substance that the state claims is so dangerous it requires emergency action.
And because there's no cap on total package content, a manufacturer could sell a 10‑pack of gummies with 10 mg total 7‑OH and still be in full compliance. Under the old rule, the same product would have been illegal at just 4 mg total.
The new rule doesn't protect Floridians. It protects the supply chain.
The Attorney General's office expects us to believe that raising the allowable 7‑OH limit by 150% is somehow a strengthening of the emergency response. They expect us to nod along while they close one loophole with their right hand and open a much larger one with their left.
That is not regulation. That is regulatory capture.
If 7‑OH truly presents an "imminent hazard to public safety," then the response should be to lower allowable levels, not raise them. It should be to limit total consumer exposure, not ignore it entirely.
Florida had a chance to lead on public health. Instead, it chose to lead on plausible deniability — giving the industry just enough room to keep selling while pretending to take action.
The bottom line:
Florida raised the legal 7‑OH limit by 2.5× while claiming an emergency. The Attorney General is counting on you not to check the math. Don't let them get away with it.
