Tavarez completed his doctorate in animal science at the University of Illinois in the program of meat science and muscle biology. His research interest focuses on the impact of nutrition and technologies to enhance muscle growth on carcass composition and quality and further processed pork items such as ham and bacon. He is particularly interested on how these factors affect fat deposition and unsaturation and, ultimately, pork shelf life. He teaches meat science, meat animal slaughter and processing, advanced meat processing, and advanced research methods. Tavarez lives in Santiago with his wife and his three children.