The food bank's board said in a letter to staff yesterday it "was not an easy decision to make and came only after considering all possible alternatives".
"It was determined that, if we continued to operate past the 22nd of December, we would be putting our ability to pay staff for hours worked and holiday pay at risk."
Rising costs forced the food bank to introduce a "service fee" this year, which meant it was ineligible for Christchurch City Council funding.
"You will be aware that at the 21 November meeting we had started a formal restructuring process at our Christchurch location, it has since been determined that those proposed changes would not be enough to enable the organisation to continue to operate in a financially responsible manner," the statement to staff read.
"This decision was made at the point where we can only just meet our financial obligations, and combined with other factors meant that in the end this was the only decision that allowed us to treat our staff and stakeholders fairly."
