At 86 years old, John Karlick says he has "nothing better to do" with his time but to get involved in community groups and charities.

He might be flippant about his work, but his dedication has seen him spend 15 years volunteering for the City of Sydney's Meals on Wheels service.

It makes him the oldest and longest-serving volunteer in the program's history.

"It gives me something to do. I enjoy it rather than messing around at home," Mr Karlick said.

"We make sure that if people don't answer the door, and that certainly does happen, we've got to check and follow up."

Wednesday marks National Meals on Wheels Day, but it is also the 60th anniversary of the first Meals on Wheels operation in New South Wales.

The first Meals on Wheels service in NSW operated out of Sydney Town Hall in 1957. ( Supplied: City of Sydney archives )

In 1957 eight volunteers in the Sydney Town Hall kitchen cooked 150 meals in its first week to deliver to older residents and people with a disability.

Today, there are 30 volunteers in the City of Sydney service who deliver 1,000 meals per week across the local area.

"The meal is probably the least important thing with the service," chief executive of Meals on Wheels NSW Les MacDonald said.

"The most important thing is the social support for frail people confined to their own home.

"Our volunteers also monitor the health and wellbeing of the client and report any issues to their supervisor."

Keeping others company

Marina Ferrari said she was grateful to volunteers like Mr Karlick who kept a close eye on her father when they delivered meals to his home in Glebe twice a week.

Sergio Ferrari is about to turn 90, and if he happens to go for a walk or doesn't answer the door, the volunteers get in contact with Ms Ferrari to let her know.

Meals on Wheels not only deliver food but give wellbeing support to residents. ( ABC Radio Sydney: Amanda Hoh )

"At least they come and make sure whether I'm alive or not," Mr Ferrari joked.

"The food is good and fresh.

"My favourite is the fish on Fridays."

Ms Ferrari said that as her father became more frail, the family did not want him cooking over a stove when he was home on his own.

"He won't admit it but he can't cook like he used to," she said.

"It's very demoralising because he used to love cooking Italian food. But he's come to the realisation that the Meal on Wheels is good for his body, not as rich as what he used to cook."

More choice in meals

There are 700 Meals on Wheels services around the country operated by local councils or community services.

Most meals are delivered in regional areas where there is often less support for the elderly, Mr MacDonald said.

Due to stringent food regulations over the years, very few services now cook their own meals but have them provided by not-for-profit suppliers or commercial food companies.

Volunteers provide company and support to elderly and disabled clients. ( Supplied: City of Sydney archives )

Some of the biggest changes to the service over the years is the variety of foods on offer.

"Those choices range from across different cultural cuisines so we can meet most of those needs of migrants that use the service," Mr MacDonald said.

"When we started the only choices we were offering people in the way of drinks was an apple or orange juice.

"Now we've done some great deals with wineries which now supply piccolo bottles to our clients on a once-a-week basis, so they now have a choice of a red or a white."