A town in Devon is having all of its gas needs met by a local plant that turns chicken manure and crops into energy, with a local MP saying it could hold answers to the energy crisis.

The factory deals in biogas, a form of renewable energy created by processing organic materials such as farm waste, crops and animal manure in the absence of oxygen.

Ixora Energy said its Devon plant was pumping enough gas into the local grid to fuel all of the 2,000 homes in South Molton.

It comes amid an energy crisis driven by international gas prices and the war in Ukraine, which has sent bills soaring.

In a bid to address this, the UK government vowed to boost domestic energy production – in both renewables and fossil fuels – earlier this month to help the country become more energy independent. But nestled in a corner of north Devon, the town of South Molton is already getting much of its energy from local resources.

Ixora Energy said its plant uses chicken manure and crops provided by local farmers as its primary materials that get turned into biogas. This then gets turned into renewable gas and electricity injected into the local grid. It said Condate Biogas, which sits just 1km outside of South Molton, was pumping enough gas into the local grid to heat 2,389 homes.

Read the full story from the Independent here.