Vege face cream maker Abundant Produce (ASX:ABT) is making dramatically less money from its two main businesses than you’d think.

A scan of its first half results makes it look like it’s doing pretty well: revenue surged by a whopping 140 per cent to $939,000 compared to same period in 2017, and the loss sank under $1 million.

But all is not what it seems.

Abundant, which sells cucumber and tomato seeds and cosmetics, actually made $69,313 from those segments in the six months to December 31.

That’s an 82 per cent drop in sales compared to the year before.

It got an extra $175,000 in unexplained “other income”.

But the lion’s share of its revenue came from the government R&D tax incentive and a NSW export grant.

It’s not clear why sales have been dropping away, and Abundant has been approached for comment on this issue.

Abundant said an exhibition during a trade show in China for a new magnesium line fielded rapturous praise and seed sales grew strongly in Australia.

The quarterly report for December said seed orders rose 188 per cent during those three months.

But a push into pharmacies only launched in January, when Australian Pharmaceutical Industries agreed to stock the skincare range, and the company is still conducting a lot of seed trials.

This is not a detail that has gone unnoticed by investors either, who sold the stock down 4 per cent today to 11c and over the last year have run away: it’s down 77 per cent over the last 12 months.

Abundant shares over the last 12 months.

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