Otto has over 40 years’ experience as a pastry chef and is renowned for his creativity and ability to match flavours and recipe design for all types of customers and budgets. He is currently Lakeland Dairies' executive pastry chef in south Asia and is based in Thailand.

He has worked in some of the most prestigious hotels in Singapore, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong and Thailand. These have included a role in Macau as executive pastry chef at the Lisboa Hotel for one of the most accomplished and decorated chefs, Joel Robuchon, where the a’Galera restaurant was awarded three Michelin stars.

While working in Singapore, Otto also enjoyed a spell on the Singapore Culinary National team as pastry chef, helping the team become World Cup Champions in Luxembourg in 1998.

Steve Munkley vice president of the Craft Guild of Chefs and culinary director of The Graduate Awards, commented: “It’s fantastic to welcome another high-calibre chef to the judging panel for the pastry exam, especially in this exciting 20th anniversary of the Awards. As ever, the exam is tough, and all the students will be able benefit from the extensive experience and talent of the expert judging panel we have put together.”  

Chef Otto will join the pasty examiners, including its chair senior development and innovation chef at Waitrose & Partners Will Torrent, pastry chef Sarah Frankland and chocolatier Paul A Young on Thursday 1st September at the University of West London.

Otto said: “Lakeland Dairies is thrilled to be part of the Graduate Awards. As a farming co-operative made up of generations of farmers, we’re extremely excited to be supporting generations of chefs. I’m looking forward to joining the judging panel for this prestigious exam, I’m especially interested to see and work with the future’s up and coming chef talent and I can’t wait to see how the students perform at the final.”

The pastry exam within The Graduate Awards is aimed at young pastry chefs and chocolatiers or level 3 students studying pastry. Known for accelerating the careers of ambitious and talented young chefs, The Graduate Awards have seen its alumni go on to win some of the UK’s most respected culinary titles including Michelin Stars.

The graduates who make the award will be announced at a celebratory lunch on the 12th September at the Lancaster Hotel, London.