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PHOENIX, ARIZONA: According to a new report, one in five Arizona households (20.5%) in 2009 reported not having enough money to buy food that they needed during the prior twelve months for themselves or their family. This ranks Arizona 17th worst in the country, and worse than 2008, when Arizona ranked 22nd with 18.8% of households struggling with food hardship. Nationwide, 18.5% of respondents reported food hardship in 2009, down from when the hardship rate peaked in the fourth quarter of 2008 at 19.5%.

The data comes courtesy of a new report released by the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), which compiles data from 2008 and 2009 by state and Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), vividly showing the impacts the current recession is having on hunger and food hardship-the inability to afford enough food.

"This data confirms what we're seeing in communities throughout Arizona, and it provides a current look at how pervasive households' struggle with hunger have become that we didn't previously have," said Ginny Hildebrand, president and CEO of the Association of Arizona Food Banks. "Certainly there's still much work to be done to assist our struggling individuals and families in this economy."

In the Phoenix metro area, the food hardship rate for all households was 19.8% in 2008-09, ranking it 27 out of the 100 largest MSAs. The percentage was higher for households with children, with 27.4% reporting food hardship over the same time period.

"These striking numbers show how badly Arizona's economy struggled in 2009," said Sharon Pierson, director of the Desert Mission Food Bank in Phoenix. "Desert Mission has seen the impact of increased food hardship by serving more clients than ever before."

In the Tucson metro area, the food hardship rate for all households was 18.8% in 2008-09, ranking 37 out of the 100 largest MSAs.

To read the full report, visit www.azfoodbanks.org or www.frac.org.