The Yummly API: A digital kitchen platform

At Yummly, our vision is to mesh the power of data and technology with the love of food to accommodate an accelerated online and on-the-go cooking community. By officially opening up the Yummly API platform, we wish to arm the ever-growing developer community with valuable data that can be unlocked, repurposed and scaled to answer specific queries revolving around ingredients and recipes.”

Interview with Brian Witlin, Head of Mobile and Platform at Yummly. A veteran entrepreneur, Brian most recently served as the CEO and Founder of ShopWell. He also holds EIR (Entrepreneur in Residence) positions at IDEO and StartX and serves as a startup mentor for 500 Startups seed venture fund, Insidr and Diamond MMA.

Tell us more about Yummly
Launched in 2010 by foodies on a mission to invent a better way to find recipes, Yummly is the fastest growing food site in the world. Our mission is simple, we want to organize the kitchen by creating the digital kitchen platform.

What API(s) does Yummly offer today?
Using algorithms, collaborative filtering, and machine learning to structure and analyze massive recipe data sets, the Yummly Recipe API powers the search for recipes based on users’ unique food preferences, which can be determined by ingredient, diet, allergy, nutrition, taste and technique parameters. This customized user data encompasses a vast and evolving database for semantic search and discovery, allowing developers to build world class applications.

When did Yummly realized that it needed an API?
Our wealth of data and web understanding put us in a position where we can offer a great range of APIs. With millions of website visitors and plugin, we are able to gain insights to have a better understanding of the web. We created our APIs to give developers the ability to use those insights to enhance their sites or mobile apps.

What recommendations and tips would you give to a company planning to launch an API?
All Yummly properties are built upon our API. We have been using APIs since inception and continue to do so as we expand to the developer community.

Why and how are you using 3scale API Management Platform today?
We are using 3scale for our API management because the tools are simple to use out of the box. We are using 3scale to support our developer portal, plans, and account management.

What benefits have you seen/are you expecting from your API program?
•Yummly wants to give back to the community of app developers who have endless creative ideas for our technology.
•Yummly sees this platform as part of the company’s evolution as a technology startup
•Yummly believes APIs are the wave of the future and seeks to power the broader food-tech ecosystem

What is your vision for your API?
Yummly’s vision is to become the most comprehensive and useful food API available.