4-Hexylresorcinol

A phenolic compound used to block polyphenol oxidase, the enzyme behind browning in cut fruit and the black spot known as melanosis in shrimp. Applied as a dip or spray, it keeps shrimp shells bright through storage and distribution without the sulphite residues that trouble sensitive consumers. Regulators permit it within defined limits, and it has become a standard anti-melanosis treatment in the global shrimp trade. Its adoption illustrates a wider pattern in seafood processing: replacing broad-spectrum chemical preservatives with targeted enzyme inhibitors that solve one quality defect cleanly.