Part of my job as a contributor to the industry’s premier animal agriculture infohubs involves spending untold hours reviewing animal rights websites and blogs, which are generally bubbling with a toxic brew of outrage, misinformation and visceral attacks on American food producers.

I soak it all up so you don’t have to.

On that basis, I can say with confidence that it’s common practice for activist groups to exaggerate the impact and influence they want their followers to believe they have. And in fairness, that’s not a tactic confined solely to the groups espousing a radical vegan lifestyle. Plenty of mainstream groups pretend that their reach extends way beyond reality.

For example: Magazine publishers routinely inflate their reach by sharing so-called “pass-along” numbers to advertisers that are much larger than their paid circulation, by claiming that three or four times more people than just their subscribers will eventually read their rags as they get “passed along” to friends and families.

Yes, it’s suspect, but nothing like the hot air about scope and scale that activist groups like to proclaim.

One of the most outrageous claims I’ve seen lately comes from a small organization known as Vegan Outreach. They specialize in what many would consider an “old school” approach to proselyting: Standing around on college campuses handing out leaflets touting the horrors of eating meat and the glories of living on soy food and salad.

Here’s a snippet from the group’s messaging: “Our approach is simultaneously pragmatic and forward-thinking and focuses on engaging those who are deemed most open to lifestyle changes: namely, the young, and, in particular, college students”

At least there’s an element of honesty in the admission that their efforts are aimed at a population that’s, shall we say, “susceptible” to propaganda about the big, bad meat industry.

But when VO’s website begins bragging about its influence, and the numbers of susceptible people they’ve touched, all credibility disappears.

Here’s an example: “Wow! Adopt a College activists have been on an amazing roll!” a recent email to supporters began. “ This semester alone, dedicated activists have already handed Vegan Outreach’s detailed, documented booklets directly to 933,321 students at 816 schools!”

A million students! In just a couple of months?

Yeah, my response to that statistic is also, “Wow!”

Only for a different reason.

The numbers never always lie

First of all, what’s the cost of a million “detailed, documented booklets?” Granted, printing a million copies of anything (allegedly) gets you a serious discount, but even still, it’s pricey. What’s the lowest possible cost, a buck apiece? That would be a bargain, considering that we’re talking about full-size (8½ by 11 inch), 16-page, four-color booklets.

Even at that much of a monumental discount, we’re talking a million dollars, in four months.

Unless, of course, Vegan Outreach’s outreach numbers are as horribly distorted as the misinformation that fills their detailed booklets, ones that carry titles such as, “Compassionate Choices: Making a Difference for Animals.” Or, “Even if You Like Meat: You Can Help End This Cruelty.” Or, “Why Vegan: Help Stop Animal Cruelty!”

Nice try, vegans, but even at pass-along rates way in excess of what the most audacious publishers try to claim, there’s no way a million people are leafing through your detailed disinformation while sitting at the dining room table.

Eating their soy burgers and salad.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Dan Murphy, a veteran food-industry journalist and commentator.