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Kratom, Commerce, and the Truth Behind the Research

Playing to Win

November 18, 2025

newsletter-title

Welcome to the latest newsletter
of Playing to Win!

My newsletter is designed specifically to help business owners like you grow your companies with tried & applied bits of business knowledge, all communicated in actionable, bite-sized chunks. I will share insights and advice aimed at enhancing your business operations, boosting your success, and allowing you to focus more on what truly matters. Let's work together to achieve your goals and make your endeavors a reality.

Key Points of the Newsletter

  • Kratom companies have long searched for pre-1994 regulatory grandfathering—but without success.
  • Despite unclear origins, Kratom has now reached an era of research-backed legitimacy.
  • Major institutions (Harvard, Johns Hopkins, University of Florida) are validating its potential.

Kratom, Commerce, and the Truth Behind the Research

There’s been a lot of noise in the Kratom industry about regulatory grandfathering, specifically under the DSA Act. The claim is that if a product was in commerce before October 15, 1994, it’s exempt from certain modern regulations. Sounds convenient, right?

The truth? Every Kratom company in the country has been trying to find evidence of that pre-1994 commercial activity. Nobody has. It simply hasn’t surfaced. And let’s be real, if it existed, we’d all be waving it around.

What that means is this: Kratom didn’t enter the U.S. market under that protected window. It came in later. Maybe post-2000. Maybe around 2020. We can guess, but the important point is this, it's not grandfathered in.

So, why does that matter?

Because now, we’ve reached a point where the industry doesn’t have to rely on old claims or grey areas. We’re standing on real ground. Today, we’re in an era where there’s enough sophistication, enough infrastructure, and, most importantly, enough capital to do the research right.

We’re not just speculating anymore. We’re funding in vitro studies. We’re investing in NDIN filings. We’re backing real science.

And it’s not just us.

Johns Hopkins is studying Kratom.

Harvard is studying Kratom.

University of Florida is studying Kratom.

These aren’t small names doing side projects, these are powerhouse institutions validating what many of us in the space have known for years: Kratom has real, positive potential.

This plant isn’t some fringe compound anymore. It’s moving into the mainstream, and we’re helping lead that charge with the data to prove it.

You don’t need to cling to outdated loopholes when you’re backed by real science.

The future of Kratom isn’t in what we claim. It’s in what we prove. And we’re doing just that.

Stay tuned for more insights in our next newsletter. Remember, it's the small adjustments that often make the biggest impact on your business's profitability. Here's to your continued success!

Stay driven to push your business forward,
Ryan Niddel