Earnings Up 55%, Jojoba Firm Says

Republic Resources Inc., a Newport Beach firm that grows jojoba beans, reported earnings of $12,127 for its first quarter ending Jan. 31, a 55% increase over the $7,834 the company reported for the same three-month period last year.

Republic Resources Vice President Richard Murphy attributed the profit to leasing 50 of its 1,140 acres in Riverside County to investors. Murphy said the rest of the land is used for research and development of the jojoba plant.

Jojoba beans are used in shampoo and cosmetics as well as machinery lubrication.

Murphy said the company showed a loss of $10,686 for the fiscal year ending Oct. 31, 1984, but predicted a profit for 1985. Additionally, the six-year-old company said first-quarter revenues totaled $221,532, a 72% drop from the $786,331 for the same period in 1984.