3Keel has taken on the role of secretariat of the Carbon Removals Taskforce (CRT), an industry forum for businesses in the food and drinks sector implementing carbon removals in their supply chains.
The CRT supports its members with practical implementation and best practice to scale up progress to meet 2030 targets. Members include supermarkets such as Asda, Co-op and Tesco, and organisations such as the Sustainable Soil Alliance and WRAP.
A clear role
In March, 3Keel convened the CRT’s first workshop of 2026, with members agreeing to the strategic focus for the next year. CRT’s role is to act as a business-facing forum with two main goals:
- Provide a forum in which members are able to share experiences, learn from each other and capitalise on opportunities to align and reduce duplication. It will also provide a space to showcase solution providers and emerging technology, and help members keep up to date with relevant information.
- Advocate for sector needs, representing the collective voice of industry to government and standards bodies. The CRT will also respond to public consultations, turning evidence from the taskforce into clear policy messages.
While the needs of members will lead the overall direction and agenda of the CRT, as secretariat 3Keel will help to shape the taskforce’s priorities, coordinate CRT meetings and ensure key workstreams continue to progress. 3Keel will provide members with regular updates, collating and disseminating industry news, case studies and opportunities.
The CRT team
The secretariat for the group comprises Catherine McCosker, Head of Agriculture & Landscapes, and Senior Consultant Megan MacGillivray. As taskforce chair, Faye O’Connor of One Carbon World manages meetings and ensures the group remains focused on its shared goals, while adviser Karen Fisher connects the CRT with wider initiatives and encourages collaboration across the sector.
At a time of accelerating global heating, the CRT provides a crucial space to bring people together across sectors to share learning, align approaches and reduce duplication of effort.
“The Carbon Removals Taskforce is an important forum for businesses interpreting and implementing the rules on carbon removals accounting,” said Catherine McCosker, Head of Agriculture & Landscapes at 3Keel.
“3Keel has a strong track record of bringing stakeholders together to tackle shared challenges, shaping coalitions and collaborations to drive change across sectors.
“From facilitating critical discussions on the challenges and progress within carbon removals through to connecting retailers, producers and data providers, we look forward to leading the CRT in supporting its members and driving progress towards net zero.”
First established in 2024, the CRT initially focused on the use cases presented by scope 3 and the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). The taskforce has since made significant progress working towards:
- Enabling a common interpretation of the rules of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol’s Land Sector and Removals Standard (LSRS)
- Providing businesses with a clear pathway and information sources to support their implementation needs
- Identifying and addressing gaps to enable scaling of carbon removals and a more strategic future framework.
Looking ahead
In 2026, an immediate priority of the taskforce will be to deepen understanding of the recently released LSRS and its implications for reporting and removals. Subsequently, the Land Sector and Removals Guidance, expected in Q2, will come under the spotlight.
Other topics the taskforce plans to tackle include the business case for investing in removals and in MRV (measurement, reporting & verification). An on-farm visit to explore baselining in practice may also be a possibility.
