A plan for alcohol ads to carry warnings similar to those for tobacco was mooted by the government's chief medical officer, Professor Liam Donaldson on Monday.
The idea came in response to new research showing an alarming rise in the number of young people suffering from cirrhosis of the liver as a result of excessive drinking.
Professor Donaldson said the government is planning talks with drinks companies to dissuade them from targeting young and female drinkers in their marketing.
ISBA's director of public affairs Ian Twinn said there were better ways of solving the problems of excessive and underage drinking, such as better education in schools and positive advertising.
"Health warnings don't work," said Twinn. "In fact they can make certain products look more attractive to the wrong people. If something has a warning on it, it can become a cool thing to do."
He added: "This government gets more money than most from excise duties, why doesn't it spend some of it on positive advertising to promote the message of responsible drinking? It has worked with issues such as drink-driving."
Twinn said the alcohol industry is very responsible, pointing to initiatives such as independent watchdog The Portman Group.
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