Contributed photo The state Senate passed a bill Friday that would limit the sale of the herb kratom to those over 18. - McInnis -

RALEIGH — The state Senate approved a bill Friday that would limit the sale of the herb kratom to individuals over the age of 18.

House bill 747 passed 40 to 0, with 10 senators absent.

It was similar to a bill introduced by Sen. Tom McInnis, R-Richmond, in March.

“We learned of the Kratom issue through a news outlet and after investigating found out from the N.C. Medical Examiner’s Office that 23 people have died in North Carolina with Kratom in their system and for about 5 it was the primary cause of death,” McInnis said in a statement to the Daily Journal on Monday.

“Furthermore, we found it was for sale in varying forms with no restriction on age,” he continued. “After studying the substance, we found some states have banned it, some have regulated it to an age limit, or some have chosen to do nothing.”

McInnis’ bill would have placed kratom on the controlled substances list alongside heroin.

He told the Daily Journal last month that introduced the bill to get a conversation going on the Asian herb.

According to a 2013 article in Scientific American, the leaves of kratom, which is in the coffee family, are used to relieve pain as an opiate substitute, and it has also been used to treat narcotic addiction.

But because of psychoactive properties, it has been banned in several countries and listed as a “drug of concern” by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

“Our bill restricts Kratom sales to anyone under 18 years of age and to conduct a further study of Kratom by the Legislative Research Commission with a report due back by January of 2017,” McInnis said Monday.

According to McInnis’ office, they found that a lot of shops self-regulate and don’t sell to anyone under 18 without parental consent.

The bill codifies the practice and creates penalties for violators, making it a Class 2 misdemeanor to sell to those under age.

Joshua Fulton, of Coastline Kratom in Southport, applauds the revamped legislation.

“The age limit to 18 was something that we in the merchant community consented to and even advocated for as a reasonable compromise,” he told the Daily Journal in a Monday email. “We’re glad to see that the Legislature hasn’t put a blanket ban on an herb that helps so many people.”

If the herb had been outlawed, Fulton said he would have had to move his company out of state.

The bill has been referred to the state House of Representatives.

Reach William R. Toler at 910-817-2675 and follow him on Twitter @William_r_toler.

Contributed photo The state Senate passed a bill Friday that would limit the sale of the herb kratom to those over 18. https://www.yourdailyjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_kratom.jpg Contributed photo The state Senate passed a bill Friday that would limit the sale of the herb kratom to those over 18. McInnis https://www.yourdailyjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_McInnisPRINT-1.jpg McInnis