Hon Todd McClay
Associate Minister of Health

27 September 2013

Media Statement
Kronic, K2, Kryptonite Banned

Associate Health Minister Todd McClay has welcomed the removal from shelves of Kronic, K2 and Kryptonite and has asked the Ministry of Health to send all psychoactive substances which have received interim approvals to Environmental Science and Research (ESR) for extensive testing.

“In the last week I’ve seen reports advising that these products are being implicated in less crime and there are decreasing reports of adverse health effects. This shows the effective work of the Psychoactive Substances Regulatory Authority, New Zealand Police, Customs and the general public who have all played important roles in ensuring that the tight restrictions around these products are being adhered to,” says Mr McClay.

“I welcome the banning of Kronic, K2 and Kryptonite which have caused considerable concern in the community. As a proactive public health measure I have asked the Regulator to collect samples of all products which have received interim approval and send them for testing at ESR. In this way we can offer greater surety to the public and send a signal to the industry that we take our responsibilities seriously.”

“Six months ago we had a situation where hundreds of products were available for purchase, from 3000-4000 retailers – and that’s a conservative estimate. To put it bluntly, it was the Wild West and New Zealand, like other jurisdictions around the world, was struggling with getting on top of this problem.”

Currently 28 products have been granted a temporary licence, being sold from around 110 licensed retailers. The Authority is in the process of referring all products with interim approval to Environmental Science and Research (ESR) for testing to ensure consistency and compliance with licence conditions. Further applications are still being assessed, but products such as Kronic, K2 and Kryptonite, which were all associated with significant harm, are now off the shelves.

Minister McClay said that he was concerned with reports that some importers and retailers were trying to get around the strict rules contained in the Act.

“I expect any transgression of the Act to be dealt with quickly. This is an issue of public health and those who choose to profit from this industry must realise that the Regulator and police will hold them to account, says Mr McClay.

ENDS

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