What is Salmonella?
Salmonella is the reason the kratom industry takes microbial testing seriously. This genus of bacteria causes salmonellosis, a foodborne illness marked by diarrhea, fever, abdominal cramps, and vomiting, and it became a major kratom safety concern after a multi-state outbreak in the United States in 2018.
During that outbreak, the CDC identified salmonella in kratom products from multiple vendors, resulting in dozens of confirmed illnesses across several states. It was a turning point. Before 2018, microbial testing in the kratom industry was inconsistent at best. Afterward, the expectation shifted dramatically: reputable vendors began testing every batch for salmonella and other pathogens, and the AKA’s GMP standards made microbial panels mandatory.
Kratom can become contaminated at multiple points in the supply chain, during harvesting if leaves contact contaminated soil or water, during outdoor ground-drying, during processing and grinding, or during packaging. The warm, humid environments where Mitragyna speciosa grows in Southeast Asia are inherently conducive to bacterial growth, making contamination a genuine risk without proper handling protocols.
For consumers, the takeaway is straightforward. Every Certificate of Analysis you review should include a microbial panel showing that salmonella was not detected. Results are typically reported as “absent” or “not detected” per a specified sample weight. If a vendor cannot produce a COA with microbial results, that is a significant gap in their quality controls.
How It’s Used
Salmonella testing is one of the standard panels included on kratom COAs, alongside heavy metal testing and alkaloid profile quantification. When reviewing lab testing results, look for explicit confirmation that salmonella was not detected in the tested batch.
The 2018 outbreak remains a frequently referenced event in discussions about kratom safety. It serves as a concrete example of what happens when quality controls are inadequate and is often cited by advocates pushing for industry-wide testing standards under frameworks like the KCPA.
Related Terms
See Also
- Vendor Reviews, How we evaluate safety testing
- Guides, How to read a kratom COA
