The Sakti Difference: Wild-Harvested Kratom vs Plantation Grown Kratom (5 Minute Read)

As a Kratom consumer, you may have come across vendors offering “Plantation Kratom” and “Wild Kratom”. So what’s the difference?

“Plantation Kratom” is Kratom that has been cultivated on a farm, this is becoming more and more common throughout Indonesia as the demand for Kratom grows. In the early 2000’s as much as 90% of the Kratom being imported from Borneo was 100% wild-harvested, as it has been for hundreds, if not thousands of years. As the industry began to boom in the mid-2000’s more and more rural Indonesian communities began to take interest in this new “cash crop”. For many, it was an exit from the poor working conditions of the Palm and Rubber harvesting industries that provide jobs to many Indonesian communities.

“100% Wild-Harvested Kratom” is Kratom that is handpicked and wild foraged straight from the jungles of Borneo. Kratom is a fast-growing tropical evergreen tree that grows like crazy! In fact, the more you defoliate the trees the faster they grow back. There is a massive, sustainable, and organic source of Kratom all throughout Borneo!

So what’s better?

At Sakti Botanicals we believe that nature knows best. Throughout our research and travels in Indonesia, we found that Wild Borneo Kratom harvested from mineral-rich river banks showed consistently higher alkaloid profiles when compared to farm cultivated Kratom. While not all plantation Kratom is extremely low grade, the majority of it does not compare to the high quality of natural, 100% wild-harvested Kratom. With the sudden rise of Kratom's popularity in the west, many farmers dove into this new type of farming in which they had no prior cultivation experience, leaving behind the ancient techniques of foraging Kratom in the wild.

The dangers of “Plantation Kratom”

Indonesia is one of many Southeast Asian countries that have become riddled with pesticide use. This is a topic we will dive deep into in an upcoming blog post. To this day, harsh Pesticide use is a common practice throughout Indonesia. Many pesticides that have been banned in the USA are still being used in Indonesia and Kratom is no exception. This is a huge problem for the Kratom industry and many vendors choose not to test their Kratom for pesticides because it is so common. As a Kratom consumer, you should always choose “100% Wild-Harvested Kratom” vs “Plantation Grown Kratom” and you should always verify that your Kratom has been tested for pesticides.

-Sakti Botanicals

An Indonesian Kratom Plantation

Credit: American Kratom Association

A Wild Kratom Forest along the Kapuas River Bank

Photo is property of Sakti Botanicals LLC