Sustainability 2021, 13, 3618 but also refers to distinguishing vegan products from those that are not. While unprocessed products can easily be classied, this does not hold for processed products. Moreover, it is not easy in all cases to draw the line between vegan and nonvegan products. One participant reported that the adhesive used to x the labels to beer bottles often contains animal products. Consequently, he would drink beer only from brands that use vegan adhesives. This reveals that the apparently simple ruleseither no meat or no animal products are in many ways difcult to implement in everyday life and can put signicant pressure on those who are devoted to vegetarianism/veganism.

Several participants admitted to breaking the rules. Vegans wore leather shoes or sometimes ate cake that contained eggs. Some vegetarians ate sh, and others expressed their regret that they were not strong enough to become vegan. The participants dealt differently with exemptions from the rules, but some felt guilty and weak. Given this background, vegetarianism and, even more so, veganism can be a personal challenge, and succeeding in this challenge denotes personal triumph. Enrichments in the diet that originate in the restrictive food choice and, as a consequence, new taste experiences can be classied as the bright side of vegetarianism/veganism. Several participants describe new and more exciting taste experiences, a more diversied diet as well as new and better body awareness as a reward for mastering the task. The restriction of not eating meat or animal products was described as a starting point for enriching the diet with products that were formerly unknown.

Obviously there is a tension as well as a complement between restriction and enrichment with enrichment following restriction. Accordingly the reward offered by a change to vegetarianism/veganism is not only mastering a challenge but also discovering new worlds of taste.

Enrichment and restriction were two of the contentious issues in the researchers team meetings. The restrictive aspect of vegetarianism/veganism was especially emphasized by research with a higher relevance of meat in the diet. Accordingly, they considered statements about enrichment mainly as an act of self-persuasion. In contrast, those more devoted to vegetarianism/veganism stressed the aspect of enrichment as a true feeling of experiencing new dimensions. Finally, we concluded that there is a tension as well as a complement between restriction and enrichment that can be characterized with the Latin phrase: per aspera ad astra (through hardships to the stars) and the feeling of restrictions can also lead to self-persuasion in order to overcome temptations of eating meat. The simpler vegetarianism/veganism becomes, the less the challenge and the reward for succeeding in the challenge. Several interviewees criticized, for example, meatless meat alternatives as not being