Florida Seizes Over 17,000 Packages of Gas Station Heroin Products Following Emergency Ban

Stop Gas Station Heroin praises Florida crackdown on addictive, synthetic concentrated 7-OH opioid products.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Stop Gas Station Heroin is commending the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) for seizing more than 17,000 packages of concentrated synthetic 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) opioid products from retail store shelves across the state.

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson reported that FDACS officials removed a total of 17,311 packages of synthetic concentrated 7-OH products from gas stations, vape shops, and convenience stores in over 20 counties. The seizure follows Florida Attorney General James Uthmeir’s emergency rule in August to classify concentrated 7-OH as a Schedule I controlled substance at concentration levels above 0.04% by dried weight. 

“This decisive enforcement action will save lives and help stop the spread of dangerous Gas Station Heroin throughout the Sunshine State,” said David Bregger, Executive Director of Stop Gas Station Heroin. “Florida’s crackdown sends a clear message: concentrated synthetic opioids masquerading as safe consumer products will not be tolerated.”

The FDACS seizure of synthetic 7-OH products is part of a broader enforcement program by the department known as “Operation Safe Summer,” which has already removed more than 197,000 illegal hemp products this year. FDACS has taken over 1.3 million illegal products off store shelves since July 2023.

According to the state’s new emergency rule, it is illegal to sell, possess, or distribute products that contain levels of 7-OH in concentrations greater than 400 parts per million (0.04%) by dried weight — levels far below what is commonly found in the concentrated synthetic 7-OH opioid products flooding American stores. Importantly this threshold does not target natural kratom leaf, that has minuscule amounts of 7-OH in it, far below the 0.04% threshold.

“Commissioner Simpson and Attorney General Uthmeier deserve credit for their leadership during this public health crisis,” Bregger added. “By moving quickly to ban concentrated synthetic 7-OH opioid products, Florida is setting a national example for how states can crack down on predatory manufacturers that sell addictive, lab-made opioids next to candy bars and energy drinks.”