Are Magic Mushroom Spores Legal in the United States?

While Magic Mushrooms Are Generally Illegal, Mushroom Spores Are Legal, in Most States.

The primary psychoactive ingredients in “magic” mushrooms are psilocybin and psilocin. Both of these compounds are listed as “Schedule I” by the DEA. According to this classification, the compounds are deemed to have a high abuse potential and no therapeutic value. Anyone who has consumed magic mushrooms before knows that this classification is misguided. In fact there are dozens of studies currently under way that are testing the efficacy of psilocybin in treating an array of mental health issues, from depression to anxiety to PTSD. There is a great deal of pressure from the medical and research communities to reschedule these substances. But, for now they remain illegal under federal law.

Despite the DEA clinging to the archaic classification of psilocybin as a Schedule I drug, the FDA, in 2018, designated psilocybin as a “Breakthrough Therapy”. This designation expedites development review of drugs and facilitates their pathway to the marketplace. The FDA found that, “preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the drug may demonstrate substantial improvement over available therapy on a clinically significant endpoint.”

Some Cities and States Have Decriminalized Psilocybin

In 2020, Oregon Voters approved Measure 109, which provides for legalized possession and consumption of psilocybin-containing mushrooms for therapeutic purposes under supervised guidance by trained professionals.

In Colorado, voters approved Proposition 122 November 2022, which paves the way for therapeutic psilocybin treatment centers in 2024, similar to Oregon. Meanwhile, the law also decriminalized possession, cultivation, and sharing of “magic” mushrooms and other plant-based entheogens, such as DMT and ayahuasca.

On more local level, A grass roots lobbying group called Decriminalize Nature (decriminalizenature.org) has spearheaded successful city- and county-wide ballot initiatives to decriminalize plant-based entheogens, including psilocybin, in such places as Oakland and Santa Cruz, California, Ann Arbor and Detroit, Michigan, and Washington, D.C.

What about Spores? Are Mushroom Spores Legal?

Magic mushroom spores do not contain psilocybin, or any other psychoactive compound, for that matter. Federal law, therefore, is silent about spores. Accordingly, it is legal to possess psilocybin spores in all 50 states, except for three, where state legislatures have specifically banned the possession of psilocybin mushroom spores: California, Georgia, and Idaho. There is a caveat, however. While it is legal to possess psilocybin mushroom spores in almost every state, it is not legal to cultivate psilocybin mushrooms under federal law; therefore, the spores must be purchased and possessed for the purpose of research, taxonomy, and microscopy.