Feb 25 (Reuters) - Commercial kitchen equipment maker Middleby MIDD.O said on Tuesday it will spin-off its food processing business, and appointed activist investor Ed Garden as an independent director.

With restaurants looking to reduce wait times and costs in the kitchen, the company expects a rebound in demand for its kitchen equipment business, which has stumbled due to choppy dining-out traffic over the last year.

Middleby said the spun-off food processing business, which makes products like bacon, bread and biscuits, would be a standalone public company.

The Elgin, Illinois-headquartered firm had come under pressure from Garden Investments, founded by Ed Garden, former chief investment officer Nelson Peltz-led Trian Fund Management.

Middleby is the first investment for the Greenwich, Connecticut-based Garden Investments.

Middleby had said in January it would consider strategic options including splitting its food processing and residential kitchen segment business units.

The company has a market capitalization of about $9.05 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. The company also named Kellanova's K.N chief marketing officer, Julie Bowerman, as an independent director along with Garden.

The company's fourth-quarter net sales of 1.01 billion beat analysts' average estimate of $998 million, while adjusted earnings per share of $2.88 surpassed expectations of $2.52, as per data compiled by LSEG.

(Reporting by Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)

((Juveria.Tabassum@thomsonreuters.com;))