There are 6 steps to take chocolate from bean to bar. 

Harvesting:

The first step is harvesting.  Chocolate is harvested from the Theobroma cacao tree (Lake Champlain Chocolates).  The cacao pods can be 5-12 inches long, with each pod yielding 30-50 seeds.  The pods are surrounded by a white pulp.

Fermentation:

After harvesting, the beans are then placed into large boxes to ferment.  Bacteria eat the pulp around the beans.  This generates a great deal of heat and also creates the flavors present in chocolate.  Without this step,  chocolate would have far less flavor.

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Source: Lake Champlain Chocolates. (n.d.). How Chocolate is Made from Cacao? Retrieved from Lake Champlain Chocolates: https://www.lakechamplainchocolates.com/making-chocolate

Top image: Neil Barnes. Bottom image: The Grenada Chocolate Company.