Building Recall Beacon

Recall Beacon started as a simple idea: what if you could know instantly when a product in your pantry was recalled? As a parent, I found myself frequently checking the FDA recall lists manually—a tedious and easy-to-forget task. This app automates that entire process.

The Challenge

Building a recall alert system involves several interesting technical challenges:

**Real-time data synchronization** - FDA recall data updates frequently and unpredictably

**Barcode scanning** - Users need to quickly add products to their pantry

**Push notification reliability** - Alerts must be timely and trustworthy

**Privacy** - Users share what's in their pantry; this data must be protected

Architecture Decisions

SwiftUI + MVVM

I chose SwiftUI for its declarative approach and excellent support for iOS-native patterns. The app follows MVVM architecture with a clear separation between views, view models, and data layers.

Firebase for Backend

Firebase provides real-time database sync, push notifications, and authentication—all critical for this app. The real-time listeners ensure users see recall updates within seconds of FDA announcements.

Barcode Scanning Pipeline

The barcode scanning flow uses AVFoundation's built-in capabilities combined with a product database lookup. When a barcode is scanned:

AVCaptureSession captures the barcode

We query our product database for metadata

The product is added to the user's pantry

We register for push notifications for that product's category

Lessons Learned

The biggest surprise was how much effort went into notification reliability. iOS's push notification system has many edge cases—silent notifications, notification grouping, critical alerts. Getting this right took significant iteration.

What's Next

Currently working on family sharing features and expanding beyond food recalls to include product safety alerts and medication recalls.

Building Recall Beacon: Real-time Food Safety Alerts