Why this exists

In August 2026 someone posted on X: assuming you're in the US, you should be able to type the food you want to buy and immediately see active recalls and known risks. FDA already publishes that data. It just doesn't look like a grocery checklist.

BiteWatch is a thin, readable layer over openFDA food enforcement reports. Those records come from the FDA Recall Enterprise System and cover classified food recalls from 2004 onward. The dump updates about weekly, so a company press release can appear here a few days later.

Class I / II / III are FDA hazard classes, not supermarket aisle ratings. A Class I event means serious harm is reasonably possible. Class III usually is labeling or quality with little health risk.

This is not a substitute for the FDA, USDA FSIS (meat and poultry have a separate system), your state health department, or a doctor. Search terms miss products when the official description uses a different brand or ingredient name.

No accounts. Watchlists stay in this browser. Search, grocery check, and recall pages call openFDA directly. A small snapshot of real enforcement reports ships with the site so the feed still opens when that API is down. The JSON file at /api/recalls.json is the ongoing list baked when the site is built — it does not accept search parameters.