Florida Agricultural Commissioner Wilton Simpson discusses the dangers of 7-OH at a news conference with Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters, left, and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. | News4Jax
Published on September 18, 2025 at 2:06 pm
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Florida state officials came to Jacksonville on Thursday to announce tougher restrictions on a substance known popularly as “gas station morphine.”
Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson announced an emergency rule that further regulates the potent opioid products, which contain 7-hydroxymitragynine — or 7-OH.
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7-OH occurs naturally in trace amounts in the plant kratom, but some companies are distributing unlawful products containing high concentrations of 7-OH to consumers, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Those products, sold as gummies and drink shots, are available online and at smoke shops, gas stations and corner stores.
Florida’s attorney general in recent weeks classified anything with 7-OH as a Schedule I controlled substance that is illegal to sell. Simpson announced tougher regulations Thursday during a news conference in Jacksonville with Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier.
Now anything with even a small amount of the kratom plant concentrate is illegal to sell.
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The change makes sure manufacturers and retailers “can’t hide behind vague labels or misleading marketing,” Simpson said. From now on, every product must clearly state 7-OH concentration in parts per million.
If it is too high, “it’s illegal and will be removed,” classifying 7-OH in the same category as heroin, LSD and fentanyl analogs.
“These products target teens and adults with flashy packaging and false wellness claims, but they are just as addictive as opioids,” Simpson said. “7-OH destroys lives like street-level heroin and fentanyl. … We won’t let it sneak into our communities disguised as a supplement. This is about keeping Florida families safe and protecting consumers who think that they are buying something natural, but are really buying high powered narcotics.”
7-OH in Jacksonville
Waters commended what he called “decisive action” by Simpson and Uthmeier against substances like 7-OH.
“While they may be sold under the disguise of harmless products, the reality is that they pose a very real threat to the health and safety of our families and our kids,” Waters said. “Locally, our narcotics units see the consequences of these substances first hand, and just last week, they seized 341.4 grams of kratom while conducting a search warrant.
“These are not victimless crimes,” Waters said. “Every packet sold has the potential to destroy lives, tear apart families and put added strain on our health care and law enforcement resources.”
Since the attorney general made 7-OH a controlled substance a month ago, law enforcement officials have seized almost 18,000 illegal packages from store shelves in 30 Florida counties, Simpson said. the packages will be incinerated.
Sixty-seven schools operated within a half-mile of stores that sold it, he said. Two of those stores were across the street from schools in Jacksonville.
“Gas station morphine” is the right way to describe the substance, Uthmeier said.
“It can be 13 times more potent than morphine, and this is what has been on shelves in gas stations and retail stores right next to candy,” he said. “We have got to get this stuff away from kids.”
