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SPEAKERS

Dave Davis

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Dave Davis is the President and Chief Legal Officer of the Utah Food Industry Association. Dave joined the Association in 2007 as their Vice President and General Counsel and was elected by the Board of Directors to serve as President in March of 2010. As the President of the association, Dave serves as the spokesman and chief lobbyist for the grocery and convenience store industries in Utah. Immediately before joining the associations Dave spent a decade as the Director of Human Resources and Legal Counsel for Associated Food Stores based in Salt Lake City.

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Dave graduated from the University of Utah with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a law degree from Brigham Young University’s J. Reuben Clark School of Law.

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Dave and his wife Kerri reside in Draper, Utah and have three daughters, three sons-in-laws and a granddaughter.

Debra Faulkner

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A Colorado native, Debra developed a passion for local history on childhood family trips around the state. She earned her Bachelors in Education and Masters in History from the University of Colorado and taught U.S. and Colorado History at Metropolitan State University for many years. Faulkner is also the award-winning author of 10 books on Colorado history, including two about the Brown Palace. As Hotel Historian, she enjoys sharing The Brown's story through tours, programs, and displays throughout the hotel. 

Genna Gent

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Genna Gent is the executive vice president of membership and industry engagement at the Consumer Brands Association. In this role, she serves as the organization’s strategic engineer for members services, partner engagement and membership growth. 

Responsible for cultivating experiences that drive industry engagement and value, Gent oversees Membership, Industry Solutions, and Meetings & Events, including Consumer Brands’ flagship events, CPG Summit and CPG Legal Forum.


Gent joined the Consumer Brands Association in May 2023 after serving as the vice president of global public policy & government relations at McDonald’s.  As VP, she she led a team of government relations and public affairs specialists in the U.S. and internationally, working to bring external public policy insights into the McDonald’s business, influence public policy and represent the business before governments and NGOs.


Prior to joining McDonald’s, Gent was senior vice president of government affairs for the American Beverage Association where she developed advocacy strategies for the country’s non-alcoholic beverage industry.   At ABA, she represented the industry before Congress, state legislatures and local governments and ran integrated public affairs campaigns in more than a dozen states and cities.


Historically, Gent served as deputy chief of staff and Washington, D.C. office director to then-Michigan Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm. The longest-serving member of the Granholm administration, she began her tenure as a speechwriter to the then-attorney general, later as communications director to the governor’s two campaigns and finally served as deputy chief of staff for communications and strategic planning in in the Governor’s two administrations.   Prior to her work in state government, Gent worked in the private sector, providing public relations counsel to corporate clients in Michigan and the Midwest.


A runner and aspiring “foodie,” Genna graduated from Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan and lives in Arlington, Virginia with her husband and two children.

Kyle May

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Kyle May, Director External Relations, started his career with RAI in 2012. Prior to joining RAI Kyle had experience across the political spectrum including the U.S House of Representatives, Congressional Campaigns, Advocacy Organizations, and Public Health Policy.  He started with RAI as a Territory Manager in Greenville, NC. From there he was an Account Manager in Fort Worth, TX, a Senior Division Manager in Macon, GA and most recently the Senior Manger External Relations.  He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Lenoir-Rhyne University and a Masters of Business Administration from Grand Canyon University. He is the proud parent of two boys Jonah (6) and Graham (3). In his free time, he enjoys cycling and running and traveling with his family.

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