Tofu-dreg project

"Tofu-dreg project" (Chinese: 豆腐渣工程) is a phrase used in the Chinese-speaking world to describe a very poorly constructed building, sometimes called just "Tofu buildings". The phrase is notably used referring to buildings that collapsed in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake disaster,^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]} and the Bangkok Audit Office skyscraper collapse initiated by aftershocks from the March 2025 Myanmar earthquake over 1000km away, which was constructed with poor construction techniques and materials.^[7][8]

Tofu-dreg project
Chinese	豆腐渣工程
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin dòufu zhā gōngchéng Gwoyeu Romatzyh dowfu ja gongcherng Wade–Giles tou4-fu cha1 kung1-ch'eng2 IPA [tôʊfu ʈʂá kʊ́ŋʈʂʰə̌ŋ] Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization dauh-fuh jā gūng-chìhng Jyutping dau6 fu6 zaa1 gung1 cing4 IPA [tɐw˨ fu˨ tsa˥ kʊŋ˥ tsʰɪŋ˩]

Origins and definitition

The phrase was coined by Zhu Rongji, the former premier of the People's Republic of China, on a 1998 visit to Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province to describe poorly built levees in the Yangtze River.^[9]

In China, the term tofu dregs (the pieces left over after making tofu) is widely used as a metaphor for shoddy work, hence the implication that a "tofu-dreg project" is a poorly executed project.^[7][8] Chinese architect Li Hu has suggested that tofu-dreg projects have a reduced lifespan or leakages but claimed that the risk of collapse was overblown.^[10]

On 15 May 2008, Geoffrey York of The Globe and Mail reported that poorly constructed buildings were called "tofu buildings", and that planners replaced steel rods with thin iron wires for reinforcing concrete, used bad cement, and used a lower amount of bricks than needed. A citizen was quoted saying that "the supervising agencies did not check to see if it met the national standards."^[11]

Examples

2008 Sichuan earthquake

This kindergarten was among the many schools in the disaster region that suffered heavy structural damage.

Main article: Sichuan schools corruption scandal

During the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, many schoolhouses collapsed; resulting in the death of students. These buildings have been used to exemplify tofu-dreg projects. The collapses were linked to allegations of corruption in the construction of Chinese schools.

…School construction is the worst. First, there's not enough capital. Schools in poor areas have small budgets and, unlike schools in the cities, they can't collect huge fees, so they're pressed for money. With construction, add in exploitation by government officials, education officials, school managers, etc. and you can imagine what's left over for the actual building of schools. When earthquake prevention standards are raised, government departments, major businesses, etc. will all appraise and reinforce their buildings. But these schools with their 70s-era buildings, no one pays attention to them. Because of this, the older school buildings are suffer[ing] from inadequate protection while the new buildings have been shoddily constructed.

— A construction engineer using the pseudonym "Book Blade" (书剑子)^[12]

The state-controlled media has largely ignored the tofu-dregs schoolhouses, under directives from the propaganda bureau's instructions. Parents, volunteers, and journalists who have questioned authorities have been intimidated or arrested.^{[13][14][15][16]} To quash the issue, riot police officers have broken up protests by parents, cordons have been set up around the schools in question, and reportage simply stopped.^[17]