The watchdog announced sanctions totalling 345.2 million euros on cleaning products makers Colgate-Palmolive (>> Colgate-Palmolive Company), Henkel (>> Henkel AG & Co KGaA), Unilever (>> Unilever plc) (>> UNILEVER), Procter & Gamble (>> Procter & Gamble Co), Reckitt Benckiser (>> Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc), Sara Lee, SC Johnson and Bolton Solitaire.

It announced a further 605.9 million euros of fines relating to personal hygiene products against Colgate, Henkel, Unilever, P&G, Reckitt, Sara Lee, Laboratoires Vendôme, Gillette, L'Oreal (>> L'OREAL), Beiersdorf (>> Beiersdorf AG) and Vania.

The watchdog said the companies had coordinated their commercial policies and, in particular, agreed on price increases.

"These two sanctions are among the most significant imposed to date by the competition authority," it said.

French cosmetics giant L'Oreal, which faces the biggest share of the fines at 189.5 million euros, denied anticompetitive behaviour and said it would appeal the decision.

"L'Oreal is extremely surprised by this decision and the amount of the fine, which are totally out of proportion," it said in a statement.

Anglo-Dutch company Unilever, whose fines total 172.5 million euros, said it will also appeal.

American firm P&G, on the hook for 154 million for Gillette and other businesses, said it will review the ruling, while Germany's Henkel, which faces fines of 109 million euros, said it would decide on further steps after examining the decision, adding that it had made provisions of 39 million.

Reckitt Benckiser said it had cooperated with the authorities and that it had made a provision in 2013 which would be sufficient for the 121 million in fines it faces.

Germany's Beiersdorf (>> Beiersdorf AG) said it had been notified of its fine, totalling 72 million euros, while Johnson & Johnson (>> Johnson & Johnson), being fined 8 million euros, said it had fully cooperated with the authorities.

Other companies were not immediately available.

Whistleblowers SC Johnson, Colgate and Henkel will benefit from varying degrees of clemency, the French competition authority added in a statement, with SC Johnson receiving total immunity.

In addition, companies owned by Unilever, J&J, Henkel, Reckitt, Colgate, P&G and Beiersdorf benefited from 16-18 percent reductions in the fines after they did not contest the facts and pledged to conform to the rules in the future.

(Additional reporting by Martinne Geller in London, Kirsti Knolle in Frankfurt and Jan C. Schwartz in Hamburg; Editing by Andrew Callus)

By James Regan